


Who the F*** is Kanto?

by BeifongFirebender



Series: Hotshot [1]
Category: Avatar: Legend of Korra, Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: Badass Toph Beifong, Cooking, Earthbending & Earthbenders, F/M, Falling In Love, Metalbending & Metalbenders, Police, Republic City
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-01
Updated: 2020-07-25
Packaged: 2021-03-04 19:33:50
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 9
Words: 40,354
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25021729
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BeifongFirebender/pseuds/BeifongFirebender
Summary: How Toph and Kanto met, how it got complicated, why it didn't work out and why Lin never heard about it growing up.
Relationships: Toph Beifong/Kanto
Series: Hotshot [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1848532
Comments: 46
Kudos: 55





	1. Annoying Triad Scum

**Author's Note:**

> Alright, so… This story has absolutely NOTHING to do with anything I wrote before. I have a different version of Kanto there, one I wasn't particularly happy with, so I decided to redo the whole story of what happened that caused Lin to happen.
> 
> This is just a cute(debatable), little(hardly) story about how Lin's mother met Lin's father and also about who the fuck he is, cause they just sprung him on us in LoK.
> 
> Happy reading :)
> 
> And the rating is JUST for the SWEARING, as always nothing graphic will be described, since I am a firm believer in "fade to black".

_**Week 1** _

"Republic City Police! Open up!" Toph banged on a door.

"Oh, shit." She could barely hear someone from inside say. She kicked down the door.

"What're you waiting for?! Grab 'em, cuff 'em and write the bastards up! I've got dinner plans!"

A group of policemen poured into the room before Toph and used their cables to detain the men inside, who were, until a few seconds ago, preoccupied with shoving money into bags.

"And where're you going?" Toph jerked her hand and caught one of the men with earth just as he was about to exit through the window.

"I'd say, he's going to jail!" a young officer announced, making his coworkers chuckle or at least shake their heads.

"Officer Fei, nice work with those cables," Toph said. "Now just learn some cool lines. What are they teaching at the academy these days anyway?"

"We got all five, Chief." Another officer walked to her. "Now how about the usual terms?"

"I would… But at this point, I feel bad taking your money, Kun."

The other officers laughed and whistled.

"No, I have a good feeling about this. We're in." Officer Huang stepped up next to Kun.

"Fine…" Toph stretched and sat down at the table.

"No touching."

"I know, _Mom_ …" She took in a deep breath and raised her right hand to count on her fingers. "I smell alcohol, beer I'd say, then cigarettes, real cheap ones, pie, meat pie. Next are drugs, of course…"

"You think we're amateurs? What kind of drugs?" Kun asked.

"That sour stench? That's gotta be Spirit Dust." Toph gave them a few moments to disagree with her, but it seemed she'd gotten everything on the table right up until that point. The game was good for honing her senses other than the seismic one, plus she was good at it and it showed her officers who's boss. "Then there has to be money and judging by the position of the furniture I bet they were playing cards."

"Cards for what game?" Huang asked and Kun elbowed him.

"Don't be a jackass."

"No, no… Blind Girl can handle herself," Toph said. Where her senses failed her a little police deduction should do. "There were five guys playing, all or most Earth Kingdom, so the most popular game I know from there that can be played with five people is… Yamin. They're Yamin cards. And the Beifong fortune keeps on growing…"

"Actually, Chief… They're Chait cards." Huang corrected her.

"What? That makes no sense. You can't play that with less than six people." It took her a second to get it. She slammed her foot into the floor with force and listened to what the ground was telling her.

_Oh._

"I must be wrong, let's get out of here." She jumped to her feet and walked across the room, sort of towards the exit, but not directly.

"Chief? Shouldn't we-" Fei started, but shut up when Toph put a finger to her lips.

All the officers' eyes were on her at once. She took a deep breath and pulled open the door to the closet in the corner of the room.

Being very focused on making it as sudden and unexpected as possible, she failed to prepare herself for the person inside hitting first. And that he did, launching himself feet first into her and knocking her to the ground.

How could she've been that reckless? He'd been supporting himself by the closet's frame inside, so the wood muffled his image, but she still should've realized someone was there. She would've if she'd been focused. Maybe Monk Supreme was right, maybe these games had no place during work hours… No, that wasn't it.

The man got himself up and running before she did, but not by much. She was just after him and out of the building in no more than a few seconds.

"Fuck him up, Chief!" Huang shouted after her.

_Oh, she intended to._

Under her feet the street formed a wave, which traveled straight for the running criminal with impressive speed. He stopped it just as it was about to crash into him.

_So an earthbender…_

The weirdly shaped concrete formed a nice bit of cover for him, so he didn't seem bothered by the rocks Toph was throwing his way. However, the second she stopped he threw some projectiles back at her, or course, having no effect either.

It looked like neither of them was really getting anywhere in that fight but Toph was closer and closer to him with every move and soon he'd be in the range of her cables. As a last, desperate measure, he threw what was probably a bench in her direction, but she dodged it with ease, gaining an opening that allowed her to punch him square in the face.

He fell to the ground and before he could get his senses back, she had him enveloped in metal.

"That was wood, you couldn't have seen it coming!"

"So you're saying I'm faking this?" Toph crouched down so he could see her face, and her eyes, then waved a hand in front of them.

"I'm saying it's impossible!"

"No... Running away from me, that's impossible."

**oooooooooo**

"How's that ice serving ya?" Toph asked once they got the criminal into one of their interrogation rooms. She'd instructed Fei to run and get him some ice, since her officers informed her the punch was swelling up the guy's eye.

"Better than that file will serve you, I'm sure…" He was referring to his record in her hand.

"Don't worry, I know everything that's here, I don't need to read. I was briefed." She slammed the bunch of papers on the table. She specifically paid attention with her feet to see if he'd flinch. He didn't. "First name, Kanto. Last name, unknown or non-existent."

"Non-existent."

"Great." She turned from him to the door. "Somebody back there write that the fuck down!"

"Yeah, Chief!" she heard back.

"Criminal record." She sat down opposite Kanto. "Pickpocketing at fifteen, shoplifting. Possession and arson at sixteen, more pickpocketing. A robbery allegation at seventeen and that's when it stops… What happened, Kanto? You finally get good at what you do?"

"I cleaned up." She wouldn't have bought his story anyway, but the unbelievable smugness this man's voice had, made her just want to… "Got off the streets, got an honest job, became an honest man."

"And what was an honest man doing in a triad den in the bad part of town today?"

"As I told your associates earlier, I deliver pies for a living." She sensed him lean back in his chair, not a care in the world. "These gentlemen I was found with, they ordered a pie and I delivered it. I had no knowledge of any illegal activities prior to my arrival there. Once I'd witnessed these illegal activities, I promptly threatened to call the police and report them, at which point the gentlemen overpowered me and stuffed me in the closet where I was found. Once you opened the door I was overcome with fear after the trauma I've suffered. That was the only reason I ran and fought back."

"How lucky that we showed up to save you…" Toph said as sarcastically as she could.

"Yes, I am most grateful for your service, Chief Beifong. You are a treasure to this city."

"There's just one thing I don't get." Then his heart jumped. It had been still this whole time, Toph was very carefully monitoring it, even though he was deliberately obvious in his lies. "We checked with your employer and found out an order for that pie was placed two hours before we found you."

"Yes, I was trapped in the closet for that time."

"Were you?" She smirked. "Then how do you explain the restaurant's log which says you delivered yet another pie in that span of time?"

"I know how you did it now." Kanto moved to rest his elbows on the table between them. "I threw something wooden at you, so you couldn't sense it, but you could sense how I moved to throw it. That's pretty impressive."

"I'm pretty impressive… Now answer the question."

"A mistake in the log, likely. Between you and me, the guys who run the log aren't really our best and brightest. Probably just put down someone else's delivery as mine."

The job was obviously a front for what he really did for the triad. Somewhere out there, there was a ten-year-old future triad member delivering pies as a cover for this smug bastard.

"Probably…"

His heart gave him away this time, even though his words were just as smooth as ever. Toph was so furious her heart reading wasn't admissible as evidence. She'd have this guy, dead to rights. He could control himself when he had a planned story, but when he improvised, he was just like anybody else. She was scared for a second she was dealing with another Princess Azula type character, but no. Just an above average liar.

"So when can I walk out of here?"

"What makes you so sure you're walking out of here today?"

"The look on your face."

**oooooooooo**

Toph had to let him go. That didn't mean she had to feel good about it, though. She did get five of his triad buddies so she should have actually been feeling pretty good as she walked home that day. Only she didn't.

She'd been doing this for a while at this point and she knew how it worked. Some of the bastards always got away. That's why no matter how hard she worked the Shades kept growing. The bad part of town, people called it. The Shades were a couple of neighborhoods where she couldn't send police officers anymore because they didn't come back. It was an old part of the city that was now completely under the triads' control.

But everything worth stealing tended to be outside those neighborhoods, so people like Kanto and the other idiots tended to slither out of the Shades often and try to drag some of it inside after them. At least she could still stop that.

And she was never afraid of entering that part of the city. They all knew she was off-limits. That's why she walked the unofficial border to the Shades every night on her way from work. It wasn't on her way at all, it was a message. It might be their neighborhood, but it was her city. And one day, one day she'd…

"Heya there, Chief." A man whose voice she recognized emerged out of an alley and started matching her pace.

"Here to turn yourself in, Kanto?"

"You wound me… Truly. I am a free man by the very law you uphold every day, Toph. You mind if I call you _Toph_?"

"Very much."

"Chief Beifong, then. Can we talk?"

"I thought we were." Toph picked up the pace.

"You were right." He caught up with her, then lowered his voice. "I _am_ a Terra Triad member."

"And I'm blind. Both are pretty obvious." She stopped then and turned to him. He didn't quite expect it, so he ran into her side before stopping as well.

"I have to talk to you. Believe me, you'll want to hear this."

"I'll tell you what… You have something to report, you come to the station like everybody else." She started crossing the street, getting further away from the Shades with every step. It was safer like that if there was an ambush, he was trying to lure her into. It that was their plan it was a shitty one, maybe that was why she found herself kind of believing Kanto. His heart said he was telling the truth, but she already knew he could fake it for a plan. She didn't quite believe him, but she was… Intrigued?

"You're seriously not even a little bit interested?" He crossed the street after her. "Or do you just hate me?"

"I don't hate you. I don't even dislike you. Those are feelings… I _nothing_ you, Kanto." That was a blatant lie. She was lucky he wasn't able to read lies, because she did strongly dislike him, in particular. A lot of crooks got away from her on the first try, that was true, but none of them were this cocky about it.

"See, if that were true, you'd meet with me…"

"No, I wouldn't! You know why?" She stopped dead in her tacks again. "Because it's so obviously a trap! And of course, I'd kick the collective ass of whoever you had waiting for me, but what's the point? What's the point when I could just kick your ass now?"

"Hey, easy!" His heart jumped. "I'm a regular citizen in the eyes of the law."

"You're a pest. Don't look for me again." She started walking way and he didn't follow her.

"The Toph Beifong from the stories would come hear me out!" He yelled after her, but she didn't mind him. "Because she's not scared of anything! She'd check her right pocket… And come tomorrow at this time to do her job."

What was he on about?

Toph suddenly became aware of a weight in her right pocket. When did he have time to…

It was one of those metal, miniature maps of the city. Of part of the city, actually. Tourists loved that shit… You could buy them at every corner. This one however had one of the houses marked with a carving of an X. That's where Kanto would be waiting tomorrow at this time…

Or him and his twenty armed friends! It was madness to go. Downright stupid… And Toph wasn't stupid. She didn't need anything from that buffoon. Nothing at all. She wouldn't go. She decided not to go.

**oooooooooo**

So obviously she went.

Tomorrow at that same exact time, Toph was climbing up the stairwell of one of the old buildings just at the border of Shades. Many such buildings were empty and abandoned, but not this one, it would seem. She could hear people running around on the floor above her as she reached a particular apartment door.

Of course, he couldn't specify an apartment number on that little map he left her, not that she'd be able to read the numbers on the doors anyway. Instead, this apartment was the only one where she could feel a substantial amount of metal on the other side of the door. She could also feel a single person inside, sitting almost perfectly still. This had to be it.

She opened the door, effortlessly bending the scraps of metal down to the floor. Despite the mess, she entered relatively quietly.

"You came, Chief," Kanto said from the table in the middle of the room. "I'm touched. I might cry…"

"Zip it. You're lucky I was bored." Toph walked to the table too, but took a moment before sitting. She was positive now there wasn't anyone else in the apartment. And the place itself… It couldn't be his. No one's that stupid. However, it wasn't a dump. It smelled clean. But in a way that meant no one had been living there for a while. It smelled old clean.

"What is this place?" she asked, finally sitting down opposite him. Despite that, her she kept her guard up, her sense listening to the earth waiting for people to come charge this place. They didn't.

"It's safe, don't worry. Rent paid for a year, no-questions-asked landlord, not close to any active triad hangouts. Trust me, one of the things I do for the Terra Triad is find safehouses like this one for them to use on jobs."

"So it's private, and I wasn't ambushed… What do you wanna say to me?"

"Yeah, so…" He coughed and straightened in his chair. "It's like this. I have a little brother, his name-"

"Look, I'm not here for sob stories, cut it short."

"It's not a sob story, it's my life. Can you just for once get over yourself and listen?"

"Alright…" She deliberately had a _tone_ as she said that.

"My brother's name is Ling, he's eleven and it's been just us for a long time. I've been earning money, well, you know how… But it's been enough. It's still enough, but recently-"

"Mr. Big Earner…"

"Do you have to?"

"Afraid so… Your story's bumming me out." She gave him an awkward half-smile thing at that, hoping he'd get it. She got that no everyone had a choice in joining the triads. It was just easy to forget sometimes. They were _the enemy_ and she was… Well, she'd forget again, she was sure of it. Next time one of her officers didn't come back and she had to call up their family and explain, they become _the enemy_ again.

"So one day, the triad says Ling's old enough, he has to join. I say, _Fuck you, no_. But they say _It wasn't a question, bitch_. And I'm not whining about my own life, it's alright. But I don't want it for my little bro. The triad used to help me give him a somewhat normal life, now it's preventing me. What I'm trying to say is, I'm ready to snitch."

"That's why you called me here? You want to be an informant?"

"Yeah… I figured we'd meet here once a week, I'd tell you what they tell me and if you need, I could tell them what you ask me to tell them. But I'd need stuff in return. I'd do it until you said it was enough, but in exchange I want a better future for me and my brother, which means: pardons for our crimes, a place to live away from the Shades, somewhere with good schools and smart kids, and also a job for me, a legit one."

"Is that all?"

"Just one more thing, actually. This would have to stay between us. You can't tell any other officers, because everyone knows Boss Man has some of your people on his payroll."

The implication got her stomach in knots. Her truthseer powers were very powerful, so any man who could slip through that was indeed a real piece of work.

"That it?"

"Yeah."

"No."

"You're telling me _no_?" His usually low and husky voice came out all wobbly.

"You heard me, didn't you?" Toph stood up to leave. This was a fucking waste of time. For both of them… "It's too much of a risk. Consider yourself lucky. The way most informants end up… Let's just say it ain't _happily ever after_."

"No, wait." He jumped to his feet and made a step to follow her. "You have to understand, I wouldn't even be asking you this if you were any other cop, but you're Toph. Freaking. Beifong. For you I can be sure you're not taking bribes, or planning on screwing me over… You're my last chance of saving my brother. We can help each other. Use that truth thing you have… What does it say about me? Am I telling the truth?"

He was. She almost didn't need her bending to make the call. It was all in his voice.

"Sorry, Kanto." She continued her way to the door. His heart was going crazy, he had to be so panicked… She shut it out.

_Don't fucking listen to it…_

"You just don't understand what it's like to have someone depending on you!"

In the span of two second from when she heard him say it, she was already screaming inches from his face.

"Oh, boo hoo, tough guy! You have one person to take care of besides yourself! One!" She poked her index finger into his chest. "I've got a whole police force full of officers who get killed if I make stupid decisions! They sometimes die even if I make smart decisions!" She could feel him back away slightly, but she kept going, following him until he was pinned by the table. "And that's not even mentioning all the innocent people of this city I'm responsible for! A kid's bike gets stolen – my fault! A husband slaps his wife – my fault! Someone selling drugs – my fault! I trust a no-good, lying criminal who betrays me when he makes up with his buddies and someone gets hurt – _my fault_!"

She realized then her temper got away from her again. She didn't usually do this. Not at criminals, not with her closest friends, not even when she was alone. It did appear to be something that was bothering her, since she obviously needed an outlet somewhere. But why did this guy always drag out that part of her so quickly?

"It's not, you know…" He paused as he sat back down. "And it's not gonna be like that. I'll keep my word and it'll be more like, half the triad behind bars – thanks to you. Less drugs on the street – thanks to you. And a little boy has a future – thanks to you."

Toph gave herself a few seconds to process that.

"Spirits, damn you… Fine!" She hit his shoulder. "Let's see what you got."

"You won't regret this. I won't ask for anything until I show results and-"

"Good, cause you're not getting anything until I see something good come out of this for me."

"Deal. And I know I'm only at second ring, but I'll work hard to go higher. For this."

"Second ring?"

"You really don't know?" How could he have that smugness of his back so quickly? "Terra Triad members are ranked into five rings, you know, like Ba Sing Se had three."

"So you being a two isn't really impressive." She grinned.

"Maybe not, but I can show you how to determine how high up someone is when you catch him." He shifted his sleeve up on his right hand. "We have our earned rings tattooed on our forearm. Give me your hand and I'll show you where they're supposed to be."

He got to his feet again and put out his hand, waiting for hers. She didn't give it. But he waited quietly, and the silence stretched on for so long she simply gave up and gave him her hand. He traced a circle around his elbow with her fingers, slowly so she could remember to show her officers what to look for.

"That's where the first one goes. We don't tell those about the five-ring system yet. They're not trustworthy enough."

Toph couldn't feel anything but skin under her fingers. The tattoo didn't stand out from the rest of his hand. She hated this. Hated when there was something in her job, she was simply useless for.

"That's why we didn't know about it," she said, and he moved to tracing the second ring.

"Now, at the second ring, people usually have some random tattoo done over it, so it's not that obvious that it's a symbol. It's been working pretty well for us until now."

"So you're not completely useless… That's good to know." She pulled her hand back.

"That's it then? Let's just say we'll meet back here in a week."

"No, Sneaky. You're an informant now, you have to be more careful about covering your tracks."

"I've been a criminal since I was a kid, Chief. I know plenty about covering my tracks."

"It's not the same. If the police catch you, you go to prison, but if your buddies catch on to what you're doing, you're a dead man. You need to get that into your head if you want this to work."

"Alright." He sighed. "So when do we meet then?"

"They can't pick up on your patterns if you don't have any. We'll need a random way of determining the day and time of our next meeting. Do you maybe have a coin we could flip or-"

"Will this do?" He took something out of his pocket.

"If I could see it, I'd be giving you an answer right now."

"They're Yamin dice."

"Perfect." She took them from him. "Is your gambling gonna be a problem?"

"No more than your unwarranted distrust of me."

"It's called healthy skepticism. And we'll see if it was unwarranted." Toph threw the dice, then felt for the numbers with her fingers.

"This is actually brilliant. You do this thing a lot?" he asked, and she nodded. "We don't give you cops enough credit. Or you, Chief. All that talk about you and big words isn't even true…"

"What about big words?"

"In the triad…" Kanto shifted uncomfortably. "They tell people that if they're ever interrogated by Toph, to use as many big words as possible, that it makes you mad so you're easier to fool."

"Big words?"

"Or just like, fancy talk. That you don't like proper talking people."

"Just because I can't read, doesn't mean I'm stupid." It was a ridiculous idea, but she was slowly realizing a lot of criminals she'd interrogated lately used words like _elicit_ or _fraternize_.

"I know, it's just what people say…"

"Tuesday, six o'clock." She walked to the door. She'd never had an informant in a triad so important before. She was a bit excited about this. "Have something for me, Kanto."

"Besides my charming personality?"

"Instead."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Anyway, this is just something I tried while working on some other stuff. I know it isn't groundbreaking ;) but if you can't tell, I'm having way too much fun with it. And as always feel free to share your opinion.
> 
> One thing I'm having particular difficulty with is getting the amount of teasing right… Cause it has to be in there cause Toph is there, but too much just comes off cringy and dumb, so I tried to balance it but probably failed.


	2. Distrusted Informant

**_Week 4_ **

“ _How_ ’s my favorite triad dirtbag doing?” Toph asked as soon as she entered the apartment. She’d made three arrests that day all thanks to her deal with Kanto. She’d never admit it to him, of course, but it made her happy. She was careful not to give away that she had a man on the inside, though. And it hadn’t been easy. She didn’t have to explain herself to the criminals, but in this particular situation she couldn’t even tell the officers where she was getting her info from.

“You’re awfully chipper, Chief.” Kanto was seated in his usual spot at the table. His voice was kind of…dull. Like the exact opposite of hers.

“And you’re awfully early. You get that third ring yet, Hotshot?” She finally settled on a nickname about a week ago. She couldn’t help herself with the way he always sat, the way he just radiated confidence even when he was obviously out of his league... He wasn’t like that now, though.

“No, not quite yet.” He paused with a dramatic flair only Katara could match. “Could you sit down for a second? We need to talk about our arrangement.”

“Pff…” She dismissed his words, but she did sit down opposite him. “Our arrangement is, you make yourself mildly useful if you want me to-” She stopped talking since she heard the rustling of paper from his direction. “Is that paper? You can’t write this shit down, Kanto! It’s proof, it could cost you that empty head of yours… Do you really need to be spoon-fed this stuff?”

“I’m sorry, I’ll burn it when we’re done. I just needed something, so I’d remember everything I wanted to demand.”

“I don’t think you’re really in a position to be demanding things, Hotshot. You only just-”

“I almost got caught.”

Silence.

“How close-”

“Airbender’s hair away.”

Toph whistled as a response. “Shit. What the fuck happened?”

“Bad luck… Doesn’t fucking matter. What I wanted to say is that if I’m gonna keep doing this, I’m gonna need some insurances from you. We’ve met three times already, I gave you important info every time, I think I deserve something for my trouble.”

“Try to look at it from my side. I can’t give you too much or there’s no reason-”

“I know.” Toph recognized that fatalistic tone he had now. It was how victims sometimes sounded. “And I know I said I trusted you because you’re Toph Beifong, but the truth is… I don’t know you, Chief. And just because you saved the world once doesn’t mean you’re not gonna fuck me and my brother right over if it suits you. When it comes down to it, you’re just a noblewoman, and I’m a commoner with no last name.”

“Things like that don’t exist in Republic City. We’re all the same here.”

He chuckled. “Yeah… Everyone knows _you_ , you’re off-limits, irreplaceable, while a guy just like me gets killed in this city almost every day, and no one gives a fuck.”

“I do.”

He laughed again. “That’s why you’re so determined to throw us behind bars?”

“At least you’re safe there.”

“You’re talking like no one’s ever been killed in prison.”

“Listen.” Toph kicked the table. “I made our system work from nothing. I know it’s far from perfect, but I don’t think it’s fair to expect me to fix the human race completely in ten years…” Her jaw clenched. “But if you insist on distrusting me… Here.”

She pulled a folded-up paper from her armor and slid it towards him across the table. A trusted lawyer assured her it was a document detailing the agreement she had with Kanto. It also stated that in the case that Kanto died while fulfilling his part of the deal his brother would be taken into care outside of the Shades.

“This is… Everything I wanted.” Kanto’s heartbeat spiked and Toph smiled. “I don’t know what to say… Except maybe, _Was that so hard?_ ”

“Don’t say anything, doofus. Just sign at the bottom and give it back.”

He obeyed, and threw in a quick _Thank you_ , while she put the document away again.

“Can we get down to business now, finally?”

“Yeah, okay.” His voice may have remained stoic, but his heart was like a kid’s at their birthday party.

**oooooooooo**

**_Week 10_ **

The dice were cruel sometimes, and it showed when they determined Toph was to meet Kanto at 5 in the morning on a Monday. They both agreed it would be good for keeping things unpredictable, but, Spirits, she wanted to be home in bed.

She was usually very careful about sneaking into the apartment as quietly as she could in her armor, but that morning she strutted in and slammed the door after herself like they were the only two people in the neighborhood.

“Well, good morning to you too, Sunshine…” She found Kanto sitting cross-legged on the table. From his posture, and by now, from experience, she concluded he was surrounded by some documents that were supposed to be helping him crack something.

“You smell something?”

“Yeah, I know I’m so close to figuring out where they’re getting the drugs from, I just can’t connect those last two dots…”

“Not that, I mean literally.” She paused to concentrate. “Are you smoking?”

“So what?”

“It’s disgusting, that’s what! And this place will smell of it for the next three years…” She walked to him and snatched the cigarette from his hand. “And then I’ll smell of cheap, triad cigarettes, which is suspicious.”

“Nag, nag, nag… Tell me, Chief, do you ever just think something? Without saying it?”

“I’m doing it right now.”

A pause.

“The smell’s not that bad.” He took the coffee mug from the table and started moving it to his lips when she dropped the cigarette right inside it. “Seriously, what’s your problem today?!”

“My problem is, you’re not taking this seriously!”

“Not taking it seriously?! I slept here so I could wake up two hours early and work out a few things for you, so I’d be ready when you came over.”

“You slept here?”

“It’s a completely functional apartment.”

“Always the same with you, it’s not a safe house if you live here, idiot.”

“I made sure people thought I was out, clubbing. I made sure I wasn’t followed. You’re just cranky because you didn’t get your beauty sleep tonight,” Kanto said, in his usual self-satisfied way, then proceeded to fish out the cigarette bud from his coffee and continue drinking it.

Toph made an expression of pure disgust, then slopped down onto one of the chairs.

“For your information, I didn’t get any sleep tonight.” She rubbed her eyes. “A woman and a little girl are missing, and all signs point to your triad being the one responsible. So I don’t need dumb drugs drop-off points,” She shoved a bunch of his papers off the table. “I need to find them.”

_My fault_.

It kept ringing in her ears.

“Fuck. Okay.” Kanto jumped down from the table, then pushed off the rest of his papers. “Let’s find them.”

“I think this is a bit above your paygrade, Hotshot.”

“Look, I’m doing this whole thing to be useful to you. So use me.” He pulled a chair, so he was sitting directly in front of her. “What happened?”

“Yesterday, your _friend_ s found out this guy Gao was betraying them for the Triple Threats. They didn’t like that, but couldn’t find him, so they took his wife and daughter to make him come to them.”

“Gao’s fifth ring. That’s serious business. If what you say is true, this is a serious blow for the triad.”

“Like I said, bigger fish than you can swim with.”

“I know _some_ people above me. I could strike up a conversation…”

“No! Look, Kanto, that would take time. I need to find them _now_!” Toph put her head in her hands. This couldn’t be fucking happening. This was useless. This whole arrangement! Him, he was useless if she couldn’t use him to find this one little girl and her mother.

Kanto leaned back in his chair, looking at the celling, and sighed deeply. They sat there like that for a few long seconds, wallowing in their powerlessness, before he spoke up.

“He’s not going to come get them, you know…”

“It’s his kid, man.”

“Doesn’t matter. If they ever found out about me and they had Ling, I wouldn’t come get him.”

Toph waited for his heart to jump, signaling a lie. It didn’t. Her shock must have been apparent on her face, since Kanto then elaborated.

“We all know, when Boss Man catches you, you’re already dead. If Gao cares about them, he’ll stay away. They do it quick if you’re not there to watch.”

Toph was, of course, aware things like these happened in the Shades all the time. People lived under these kinds of threats their whole life. It was their normal… Yet, it was somehow more horrible seeing how Kanto’s accepted it too.

“How can you follow that kind of asshole and just be okay with it?! I don’t get it!” She banged her fists on her knees.

“I wouldn’t expect a noblewoman to understand.”

“Call me that one more time and the deal is off, Street Boy.”

He nodded in understanding, then stood up and started picking up the scattered papers.

“At first, you’ve got a choice, die of starvation, or die fighting in a triad. Only when you’re in, do you hear stuff like this. Then there are only three ways out: die, turn or get caught.”

“Why do your stories always make me want to off myself, eh, Kanto?”

“Cause they’re true.”

She chuckled desperately, then stood up and started towards the door. Spirits, she really did feel like shit…

“You’re gonna sleep first, I hope,” he said after her.

“As long as I can move, I’ll search for them. I’ll go door to door if I need to.” And that was supposed to be it, she cracked the door open.

“Wait. I might have something.”

Toph closed the door and listened.

“Ling delivers messages for the triad now. He told me they were sending food and clothes to an abandoned property in Copper Street. Now, I’m not sure, obviously. But that could mean they’re holding your hostages there.”

Almost like an instinct, she moved the floor under him with her bending, so he fell flat on his back. She didn’t even have to think about it. It just happened. In the next second she was above him, then in the next one after that she was pulling him up by his collar.

“You’ve been holding back on me, Kanto?”

“I’m not one of your officers.” He pulled himself out of her grasp. “We have a deal. I owe you nothing more. And I certainly don’t owe you my brother’s life. I wasn’t giving you his stuff because… If the information was given to only him, they’d think he was the snitch. He doesn’t even know I’m doing this yet.”

Toph took a long breath. “Don’t tell him.”

“So you get it?”

“Yeah, I fucking get it.” She was shaking the ground involuntarily. She just noticed so she made it stop. “I’ll find a way to make it look like we stumbled on them there.”

“I appreciate that.” Kanto relaxed finally.

“You ever hold back on me again-”

“I know, I know… The deal is off.”

“No. I bury you under ten feet of earth.”

**oooooooooo**

**_Week 13_ **

“The gist of it is, I can’t get that key,” Kanto explained as he did push-ups on the kitchen tiles. “I’ll have to get around the lock somehow. But it can’t be lockpicked…”

“I told you that you won’t get it last week,” Toph said from the couch. “I told you the week before that. What does that tell you?”

“Um, that you talk too much?”

“Funny.” She put her feet up on the end table. “Maybe you should try telling the lock one of your jokes?”

The grunts he was making were enough of a distraction on their own, she didn’t need her feet on the ground sensing everything.

“I actually have an idea on how to deal with it.” He started walking to her from the kitchen.

“Is that so? _Please_ share it.”

“I thought you could teach me metalbending,” He said carefully. “If I knew even a little bit, I could open any lock in town.”

“Dream on…”

“Oh, come on.”

“Not happening, Hotshot.” Toph pulled her feet down from the table. “I’m not teaching someone who works for my enemies.”

“ _Used to_ work for your enemies. Now works for you.”

“Oh, so you work for me now that it’s convenient. But when _I_ need something then it’s _You’re not the boss of me, Chief_ … This could all still be an elaborate hustle to get me to teach a triad member my secrets.”

“Fair enough.” Kanto sat down onto the end table. “I get it. It _sucks_ , but I get it.”

“We’ll figure it out without that. Now, get to work.” Toph poked a finger at his chest, only to find it touched skin, not cloth. Her hand froze in place. “Kanto, are you wearing a shirt?”

“Not really…”

“Why the fuck?” She pulled her hand back.

“I took it off to exercise, and I didn’t think you’d notice.” He chuckled. “Sorry.”

“You’re getting a little bit too comfortable with this whole situation.” She stood up and moved to the window. She couldn’t stare out of it, but she wanted to get a bit of distance between the two of them.

“I am comfortable. I trust you now, Chief. Too bad you won’t let yourself trust me.” She heard him as he walked into the kitchen again.

“Where’s that coming from now? I risk people’s lives on your word.”

“Yeah, you do. You trust my information, because I have an interest in keeping it correct.” He walked to her, then pulled back the curtains to open the window before leaning through it. “But you don’t trust me.”

She wanted to scream at him for sticking his stupid head out the window where everyone could see him. This, this is what happened when one got too comfortable while on a job. But it bothered her… It bothered her being called uptight. It bothered her having to be _Katara_ to him, but the man refused to use his head.

That she didn’t trust him… She wouldn’t be here if she didn’t.

“Don’t worry, we’re high enough so that no one could recognize my face.” Kanto answered a question she didn’t ask.

“I do trust you.”

“Well, I don’t need your truth power to know that’s bullshit,” he said, and she could smell smoke. “It’s been months and you haven’t taken that armor off once in the apartment. You call me all kinds of colorful nicknames, yet you won’t let me call you by your first name. You’re always on alert here, like I’ll always be a criminal to you, no matter what I do.”

“Hey, just because I can keep my top _on_ during our _business_ meetings doesn’t mean I have something against you.”

He snorted, then slowly and audibly blew the smoke from his cigarette. “Still… You know a lot about me and my brother and stuff…”

“I’m famous. I’ll bet you anything, you know more about my past than I do about yours.”

“That doesn’t count. You don’t share anything personal, you’re very careful about that.” Fuck. He noticed.

“We have a business relationship.”

“I bet you’re friends with your officers. It’s the only way to trust someone with your life.”

“You want personal? Ask away, Hotshot…”

“Wh-”

“What?”

“Nothing.”

“What?”

“I was gonna ask what your favorite color is before I remembered… You know…”

“It’s brown. Feel closer to me yet?” She leaned so her head was out the window too. She’d get some smoke blown into her face, but to be honest, she was getting used to it.

“How’d you decide that?”

“I once asked someone, Aang or Sokka, or whoever, what color earth was. They said brown, so brown it is.”

“It fucking sucks you have to choose like that…”

“Don’t go pitying me just yet, Kanto. I can see what the people two stories above us are doing.”

“I can’t see it, but it’s eight in the morning, so I’m guessing drinking coffee.”

“Close. They just finished screwing, they’re about to make coffee.”

“So they’re having a lot more fun than we are,” he joked. She decided to ignore it.

“Coffee’s brown, I know that. And… Katara’s hair.”

“And my eyes. Also chocolate, and cookies and wood oftentimes.”

“See, don’t we feel close as family already…” She mocked.

“Favorite tea?”

“Green.” He gave her some time to follow up on that, but she didn’t.

“Alright, how about saying something about your friends? What’s the Avatar like?”

“See, now, this could be used to get information out of me.”

“Fine. Move.” He closed the window and started picking up his things all over the apartment. “I can’t be fun to live like that, being suspicious of everything…”

“Just ask another question.”

“What do you do for fun?” He stopped leaving and waited for her answer.

“Nothing. I don’t really have time for that with this job.”

“Yeah, sure.” He huffed.

“I’m not lying. I wish I was. It’s a damn hard job keeping all of this running. I hang out with you more than I hang out with my friends… I forget to eat most days.”

“I am a bit flattered I’m the only person you have fun with… See you Wednesday,” he added from the door, “Toph.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Anyhow, here’s another chapter… I don’t know what to say about it. I write couples meeting each other and falling in love when I’m stressed (yes, it’s a rule) and I’ve been stressed since March so that’s why this happened.


	3. Ally

**_Week 21_ **

Toph didn’t even make it two steps through the door, Kanto already handed her a scorching cup of green tea. He did that every meeting now, ever since she told him it was her favorite, and it was annoying as fuck. Well, what was annoying was that he was trying so damn hard…

And she was getting used to it, which was a disaster. Every time she opened that door the smells of his jasmine and her green tea would make her feel… Relaxed? That was as close to describing it as she could get.

But that day she smelled something else too.

“Judging by your face, I guess you noticed I’ve been cooking.” He barely managed as he ran back to the stove in the kitchen. The apartment actually smelled like people lived there, for once. Not like bad coffee and cheap cigarettes. It was fucking weird. “Take a seat, I got some extra.”

“I keep rocking my brain, but I have to confess I have no idea what this has to do with the triad?” She took off her damp jacket. It was pouring outside, so the warm apartment was a real improvement.

“That’s cause it doesn’t.” She heard plates clanking, she didn’t even know they had any here. “I’m cooking for Ling, but I didn’t think I’d have time once I got home so I’ll just bring it with me and say I made it there.”

Toph felt today might be the day. He was still in the kitchen, no doubt arranging food on plates. She took a deep breath and bended off her armor, leaving it standing up by the door. She’d thought about it for weeks now. It was a sign of good faith. A sign she saw Kanto as more than a criminal. A sign of trust. Just a small gesture really, but for some reason a small part of Toph held it off for weeks.

She was just about to sit down when Kanto walked out of the kitchen with something that smelled really good. It was only then that she realized she didn’t remember if she’d eaten anything since yesterday and that was worrying. Then Kanto laughed slightly.

“What?” She sat down.

“It’s just… You look so tiny without your armor.” His tone wasn’t malicious, but Toph wanted to punch him just then. She finally overcomes all her shit to be normal with him and _this_ is what he has to say? Idiot…

“You know, this tiny little girl could still kick your ass, Hotshot. Now shut up, or I’ll start commenting on your girly-ass hobbies.”

“Hey, you want the pasta or not?”

“Yes, please.” It was a mistake telling him about her not eating often enough. For some reason he obviously took it as a personal challenge. Before he’d just bring bagels or something, but cooking was a bit much.

She pondered this some more, until the first bite of food touched her tongue.

“What? You don’t like spicy food?” he asked.

“Kanto, this is the best food I’ve had in my life!” She stuffed some more into her mouth, then continued while chewing. “You made this?”

“Yeah.”

“Well, what’s it called? Cause it’s the only thing I’ll be ordering for the next month…” She took another break to stuff more pasta into her mouth.

“It doesn’t have a name… I kind of made it up.”

“You made this up?” She gestured to her plate. “You idiot!”

She threw one of her chopsticks at him, then found herself unable to continue eating. Well, that was unacceptable.

“Why?” He handed the chopstick back.

“All this time I could have been looking for a cook job for you! But no…” She took another mouthful. “You tell me you never finished elementary school. I ask about skills, you list your _mediocre_ earthbending, but you don’t mention you’re fucking chef extraordinaire over here…”

He chuckled. “You really like it that much?”

She nodded in response and he pushed his plate over to her as well. Both plates were empty by the time Kanto finished giving her his weekly report.

“Why the bravery all of a sudden?” she asked, playing with the chopsticks.

“Cause the word is, Avatar’s going out of town.”

“Bastards.” She grinned. “It’s his anniversary. I can’t believe they figured out he’s always unavailable on that day…”

“Can’t you just ask him to stay, like his friend?”

“Oh, no… No.” Toph chuckled. “Katara would kill me. That’s the one day a year she gets alone with her husband and I would be crazy to try to mess with that. But I’ll be there as always. I’ll mess up their plans, don’t worry.”

“So unlike the Avatar to blow off a chance to help.”

“Yeah, not really. Aang never really wanted any of this shit. He just wanted a family. He didn’t go out of his way to make his life into nothing but work, like me.”

“So you wouldn’t skip something like that robbery for an anniversary?”

“I honestly can’t even imagine myself having an anniversary with someone… It’s not really _me_.” Well, that got… unnecessarily honest.

“I get you there.” He stood up suddenly. “I gotta get going if I want Ling to think I’ve been home this whole time.”

“I’d say to give him my best, but…”

“Yeah, soon though. Bye, Toph.”

He didn’t wait for her to say it back, he just slammed the door and she could feel him running down the stairs. Why was this criminal she had nothing in common with so easy to talk to?

**oooooooooo**

**_Week 24_ **

After that first time, Kanto cooked for her again, every time since actually, so she was beginning to get used to that too. It didn’t distract from their work like she insisted when she caught him making some kind of stinky soup (that ended up being phenomenal), it just made the whole experience of sneaking around and risking people’s lives a bit more tolerable.

And it was going great. The work. Kanto never had a lot of information to give, even though she believed him when he told her that getting even this much had him working days and nights. But it was enough. They made it enough. They even begun ignoring some information recently, planning on using some of it later, in an opportune moment to get Kanto up to third ring.

That Monday, Toph found Kanto planning something at the table. She immediately knew something was wrong, since he was sitting like a normal person. No feet on the table or another chair, no crossed legs, something had him serious.

“No tea?” Toph had gotten so used to being handed her cup immediately after she came to the apartment, that this kind of pissed her off. But he was working so she didn’t show it.

“In the kitchen. Help yourself.” His tone was… Not very Kanto-like. Kind of hostile. Like he was mad she even came. Well, it was none of her business what had his panties all in a bunch.

She determined the right pot by smell and then poured herself a cup. Of course, it fucking spilled everywhere, but it didn’t get her, and the way Kanto’s been acting, she decided to leave that mess for him to discover.

“Got anything good for me?” She took a seat on one of the chairs next to him, instead of the one opposite him. Like she wanted to look at his papers, only she couldn’t. In truth, she wanted to be closer to get a better read of his heartbeat. He was giving her all kinds of wrong vibes today.

“Actually, I might know how to get that third ring by next week.”

“You really are a hotshot… Okay, let’s hear it.”

So he explained his plan. His plan to blackmail a fourth ring member with his mistress, that hinged on so much luck it was almost not accurate to call it a plan, but a dream.

“Didn’t you say one time, that his office was locked?” was all she said in response, but it was far from the only part of his idea that straight up wouldn’t work. What had gotten into him with this nonsense?

“Oh, fuck! You’re right!”

“I often am.”

“Fuck!” He shoved the table forward, without giving any indication beforehand, then started pacing the living room.

“What’s with you?”

“I just need to get that ring already!” He was screaming then, but he sounded tired more than anything. Was the triad maybe onto them? Was that why he wasn’t moving up?

“I hate to break it to you, Kanto… But that plan was shit. It’s way too reckless, not to mention stupid! Wu would kill you before he’d give you any perks for threatening him. Do you even think with that head of yours?!”

“Well, I’m getting nowhere with your approach! I’m sick and tired of sweet-talking those old fools, I need-”

“You can’t get yourself killed, because you’re a bit stuck at the moment. Think about Ling.”

“That’s all I ever do! You… You have no idea. Those bastards!”

“Did… Did something happen to Ling?” Toph asked carefully. She didn’t even know the little brat, but she hoped with everything she had her hunch was wrong.

“He’s fine!” Kano sat right back next to her. “I just need to get him out of there as soon as possible, and moving at the pace we are, it’ll be too late when we’re done with our deal.”

She knew the sound that followed. Him taking a cigarette out to light it. She slapped it out of his hand.

“No, you tell me what happened! Someone did something to him, I swear we’ll lock him up for good.”

“No one did anything to Ling.”

“Don’t lie to me, Kanto. You’re on the good side now, you can report something if-”

“Ling killed someone.” Kanto said, then took out another cigarette and lit it. She didn’t stop him. She didn’t speak at all for a while.

“What?”

“Exactly what I said. While I was out rubbing elbows to get my ring, the triad ordered my little brother to kill someone and he fucking did it…”

“I didn’t know he was that deep.”

“ _I_ didn’t know he was that deep!” Kanto’s heart threatened to jump out of his chest. “He’s twelve years old… And he’s not even sorry! I knew he enjoyed working for the triad so far, but, _fuck,_ passing notes is one thing, but contract killing is another thing entirely.”

“What did you say to him?” She didn’t want to make it obvious that she worried about him mentioning her involvement, but it came out that way.

“Nothing about you. I just…screamed at him.” Kanto buried his head in his hands. “I couldn’t even tell him why I had such a problem with it, because I’m not sure anymore he wouldn’t rat me out for snitching.”

_My fault_.

She felt it again. The guilt over this small child becoming a killer. She should have cleaned up the Shades by now… Then it wouldn’t have happened.

“If you’re worried about him, I could get him out right now.”

“You’re not arresting my little brother, Toph.”

“Not what I meant. I could get him settled somewhere nice, while you finish up our deal. You did a lot already.”

“No! I’m doing a shit job taking care of him, but there are two things I managed: keeping him alive and keeping him with me. I’m not giving up on those.”

He looked up then, apparently staring at her, waiting for her to weigh in, but she had nothing. What could she say, as a cop, that would make him feel better?

“He’s twelve, who knows what kind of consequences this will have for him? To kill someone so young, I don’t know if he’ll ever-”

“I was twelve,” she said. It just came out, like her brain didn’t even have to ask permission before it shared stuff like that. “When I… You know… Killed someone.”

He was way more shocked than she expected.

“I wouldn’t expect-”

“I was in a war at twelve, Kanto. People were trying to kill me every day… I didn’t plan on it, but things happened out there. You use your bending too hard, people get squished, pushed off cliffs, trapped in the rubble. And you kill them.”

“It’s not the same. You were in danger. You were defending yourself…”

“No. We march somewhere with a purpose, no matter how noble that purpose is, it’s still our doing.”

“But the Avatar says-”

“He was always very careful… But his Avatar state wasn’t.” Toph paused, remembering why she even went down that particular endless hole of misery. “Yet, we got over it. Twelve or not, you handled your shit and you survived long enough to cry later. It didn’t turn me into some kind of a psychopath, and Ling will be just fine.”

“I want to believe that.”

“It’s true. You don’t know what they would have done to him if he’d refused. It wasn’t entirely his choice either. You probably know that from experience by now…”

“At least I was sixteen my first time.”

“Contract?”

“No. Me and some friends got jumped by a rival gang. This guy was coming at me with a knife, I didn’t even have time to think. Made an earth spike, ran him right through… But it made me sick. I cried and threw up the whole night after. Ling’s just so unaffected.”

“Sometimes you need some age to figure out what you did.”

“Thank you.”

“For what? For not protecting your brother?” Toph chuckled bitterly.

“You know, for-”

“I know.”

“I mean, you didn’t have to, but-”

“I know.” She stood up then and stretched her arms. “How would you like your first metalbending lesson today?”

“For real?”

“You shouldn’t get your hopes up, though, Hotshot. Only about one in a hundred earthenders can get it.”

“I’ll do my best.”

**oooooooooo**

**_Week 25_ **

Toph slept in that Thursday. She spent most of the current week trying to catch the Terra Triad’s largest Scorching Ice supplier, and yesterday, she’d finally done it. After that whole mess, she felt she deserved one good night’s sleep.

She arrived at the station after noon, and took her sweet time getting to her office since her officers kept stopping her to congratulate her on the breakthrough. After all, there was nothing wrong with some attention. She worked her ass off for this!

Her and Kanto did, actually. Of course, she couldn’t mention him. But she couldn’t wait to tell him about every second of how the operation went. He came up with a big part of the strategy, after all.

“I thought you took a day off, Chief.” Kun ran into her in the hall in front of her office.

“Don’t be stupid… Of course, I won’t stop now that I’m on a roll.”

“Damn straight!” Huang added as he was passing the other two. “Hey, wait.” He turned back. “I have something that’s gonna make you even happier than you are right now.”

“You proposing to the Chief, Huang?” Kun laughed.

“You shut your mouth!” The man’s heart went crazy. “I know you want to be flower girl, but this is not the way…”

“Boys, I do have places to be this week…” Toph rolled her eyes.

“Right.” Huang elbowed his friend. “Me and Fei caught that guy.”

“If I have to guess which one, this won’t be over quickly.”

“I can’t remember his name… The pie delivery guy, the one that got away, it’s something like Kan or-”

“Kanto?” She tried to make her shock seem like it was a nice surprise, but she wasn’t sure it was working… This, this was bad.

“Yeah, just the one.” Huang took a bite out of the sandwich he was carrying. “We got lucky actually, he just walked up to Fei and socked him across the face. No reason… They really are animals some of them. Anyway, the poor boy was so surprised, he didn’t even have the sense left to arrest the bastard. That’s why I showed him how it’s done.”

“Is he alright?” Toph asked before thinking. Luckily, it made more sense to interpret it like she was asking about her officer. Not about Kanto, like she actually meant it.

“Yeah, the kid’s fine. Perfectly fine. He’s interrogating that street trash with Hong right now. I stepped out for lunch.”

“What room?”

“Seven.”

Toph didn’t want to seem too eager, yet she was terrified Kanto had already gotten himself in too much trouble for her to fix it. Hit an officer? What the fuck was he thinking?! Was he drunk? Was it some kind of a triad test? Was he in trouble of some kind?

“Hong?” She peeked her head into the room behind the glass in room seven. She could feel Kanto was inside, pacing behind the glass, she already knew his walk pretty well.

“Yes, Chief? Good morning, Chief.”

“Where’s Fei?”

“Doctor’s office, Chief.”

“Good.” She considered her options for a second. “New assignment, Officer. You’re to exit the room and guard it from anyone entering until I’m done with the suspect.”

“Chief?” He seemed uncertain, but walked out like she ordered, closing the door behind himself.

“Just do as I tell you. Tell no one about it.”

“Oh, I see, Chief. He’s in for a _special_ interrogation.” Hong cracked his knuckles as a sign of what he meant. “For pummeling one of our own.”

“Just watch the fucking door. I feel anyone behind that glass, and you and I are gonna have a very _special_ time together.” She cracked her knuckles and entered the interrogation room.

“So we meet again, _Chief._ ” Kanto faked the smugness well enough, which told her he wasn’t in total ruin. Nothing bad happened. He was probably just being stupid.

“Cut the shit, we’re alone. Now what did you _do_?”

“Desperate times, Toph…” He sighed and walked way closer than she was comfortable with. “They’re gonna try and kill you.”

“Who?”

“The triad. Tomorrow, they’ll set off a bomb and they have an ambush waiting for you when you respond.”

There was a beat. Then Toph burst out laughing. “That’s why you risked your cover? Kill me, Hotshot? Not gonna happen.”

“Those guys are not fucking around! They have like fifty people ready for you, mostly benders. They even asked me to participate…”

“You’re right. Now, I’m _scared_ ,” she said as sarcastically as she could, smirking from ear to ear.

“After all that talk about me being reckless… All your dumb security rules I had to learn.”

“Those rules are for _you_ , not me. I could have handled them easy, even without this stunt of yours. We’re not exactly in the same league, you and I.”

“We are, in the sense that we can both _die_. You do know that, right? That you’re not invincible?”

“Against those guys, I am invincible.”

“They’re prepared for all your tricks. Toph, I’m serious as a Dai Li agent, you could be _killed_.” Saying that last word he grabbed hold of her shoulders. She stiffened. No matter how much she wanted to listen to his heart at that moment she couldn’t because her own heartbeat was ringing in her ears.

“I mean…” He let go and turned around. “No one knows about our deal besides you so if you die, I’d be screwed.”

“That’s why you got yourself arrested?” She felt kind of…disappointed?

“Yeah, I did all of this for the contract.”

_Lie_.

The change in his heartbeat was unmistakable.

“So you didn’t worry about me?” She mocked.

He snorted. “No.”

_Another lie._

She was almost flattered.

“I have our contract together with my will. If I happen to bite it before you do, you’re set.” She was so close she could hear him relax through his breathing, but not all the way. “But I’ll take Aang with me. Just in case.”

“Smart call. Have any idea how to get me out of here now?”

“It won’t be easy, since you assaulted an officer. I guess, I could _lose_ the papers about your arrest and say they had mistakes in them.”

“And I bet the other cops think you’re kicking my ass right now…”

“Kind of.”

He sighed. “Fine. Do it then.” He turned back towards her and put his hands behind his back. “The face, so they can see.”

“We don’t need to do that. You can just pretend I sacked you in the gut, and it’ll be fine.”

“Afraid not… I can’t show my face back home after punching a cop without at least a few bruises. It’s suspicious.” He chuckled to himself and sat down. “Come on, Chief. Lay it on me, I know you wanted to ever since you met me.”

_Screw him for making sense!_

Toph hesitated. She had a long history of punching and getting punched, so she was trying to figure out a way to do it that would cause him the least amount of pain.

“You’re not gonna make me do it to myself, are you?” the smug son of a bitch asked. “Should I try and make you mad? That could be fun.”

“I’ll do it,” she said, but she apparently took too long again.

“Your bending is mediocre, at best. Nothing impressive about it.”

_Lie._

But she didn’t need her truthseeing to know he didn’t mean that one.

“You… You talk too much, yeah. And you think you’re so funny, but you’re not. And when you smile you look like a crazy little boy…”

_Lie. Lie. Lie_

How could he not see he was making it harder?

“And your station is a disgra-” He was interrupted when she slugged him, throwing his head back.

“Too hard?” That came out way gentler than she intended it to. What was wrong with her?

“Just right.” He spit on the floor, probably blood. “One more, just like that.”

She hit him again.

“You have a mean right, Chief.”

She punched him one more time with her left, then stopped.

“Had enough?”

“Personally, yes. But I don’t think I look like enough of a mess.”

“Spirits… Here.” Toph leaned over him in the chair and started pulling at his hair, disheveling it. It was wavy, she had no idea. She tugged at his shirt next, tearing off one of the buttons. “You look like a mess now?”

“I’ll say…” His voice was a bit more gruff than usual. Or maybe she hadn’t been paying attention.

“Then stay here while I destroy Fei’s stupid report.” She walked toward the door.

“Be careful around that young guy.”

“Fei? Why?” She smiled.

“I punched him for no reason and instead of arresting me right away, he was telling me to get out of there until his partner showed up.”

Toph turned. “You think he’s-”

“I don’t have proof, but I think he works for us.”

**oooooooooo**

**_Week 26_ **

“I told you, you have to practice every day!” Toph slammed the table making all the utensils from their lunch jump.

“I do practice every day!” He picked up a spoon with some remains of the cake he made for them. Then he stared at it. Intently.

“So?”

“It should be bending…”

“You should be bending.” Toph casually raised her palm and the spoon melted in his fingers, dripped down to the table and formed the same spoon again. “Maybe we have to face it that you’re just not one of the people that can get this. Nothing wrong with that…”

“Yes, there is! And I’m so close, I can feel it.”

“Too bad you can’t feel the little parts of earth in the metal.” Toph grinned and started putting away the dishes.

“No, no, I’m really close. I think I moved a fork yesterday.”

“You _think_?”

“Yeah, I think I saw it move an inch or half.”

“You _seeing_ people...” She shook her head. “You don’t look at it, you either feel it responding or you don’t.”

But his stupid ramble gave her an idea.

“I guess, I’ll practice some more and next time-”

“No, I got it. I’ll teach you to see like me, first. Then you’ll get it!”

“You’d do that?”

“Yeah, just black out the apartment and get yourself a blindfold of some kind.”

“Shouldn’t be too hard, it’s almost dark out.” He jumped up and started barring the windows. “You could make the blindfold.”

“And how’d I test it, genius?”

“Right… Then just-”

“I’ll eat the rest of the cake.” She left for the kitchen. “I swear, you cook like I metalbend.”

“Cocky and too often?”

“Watch it. You’re about to be at my mercy.”

She had time to eat a whole slice of cake before he finally announced he was done.

“So you can’t see anything?” She kept eating. “Spin around a few times, then walk to me.”

In just a few seconds she heard a crash. It was Kanto catching one of the chairs in the stomach. Idiot…

“How’s it going?” she teased.

“Fuck you… Why didn’t you tell me I was about to walk into it?”

“I’m not here to play _Hot and Cold_ , get serious. Stomp your foot.” He obeyed her words. “Feel anything? Where all the furniture is? Where I am?”

“I guess…”

She sighed, then put down her plate and started walking towards the bathroom, slowly and loudly.

“You’re… You’re moving.” He pointed and followed her movement with his hand.

“Congratulations, you can hear. Now compare the sounds to what you’re feeling with your feet.” She was beginning to worry all this was pointless. She’d seen it before, some people just couldn’t learn.

“I think I’m starting to get it.” He stomped his foot again. “Who taught you this?”

“No one. I taught myself.” She moved, and he shook the ground where her feet stopped. “Good.”

“You mean that story’s not made up? How old were you?”

“Three maybe, to be honest I don’t really remember it much.” She moved again. “Walk to me, but no running into things. Take your time.”

“Three?!” He started walking to her slowly. He had a chair in his way but went around it.

“Don’t worry. I’m sure you’re smarter than a three-year-old, Kanto.”

He made it.

“Good,” she said. “Now I’ll move quietly.”

“Alright, I’m ready for it. Toph?” He stomped his foot. “Toph?”

“What’s the hold up?” she asked from somewhere behind him.

“That’s insane!” He whirled. “How’d you get there?”

She just chuckled. Without her armor on and with bare feet she was eerily quiet. She almost felt bad for him.

“Remind me to never fight you in the dark.”

“You could’ve ended that sentence after _you_.”

After a few tries, for which Toph gave him way too much time, he was actually getting quite accurate at sensing where she was. Even his moving around in the dark got decent. She had no idea if any of this would help him finally metalbend even one lousy spoon, but it was worth a shot.

“I’m rocking this!”

“Okay, Hotshot, how about you try catching me now?” She started walking away, still quiet but faster than she’d done before. He stomped his foot, which meant he was confused. Toph passed right by him and he didn’t feel anything until she was already gone. If felt kind of good sensing him stumbling around, reaching for her in the dark after all the crap he thought he could get away with cause she was blind. The hardest part of evading him was stopping herself from laughing.

She passed right by him again, only this time he almost caught her arm. She wouldn’t give him the satisfaction… She kept her mouth shut and walked to the opposite part of the apartment to be sure. He’d have to practice a lot more if he was planning on…

Suddenly, Kanto burst into motion, jumped on the table and slid across it, only to land of the other side. She was paying attention to his movement, but she hadn’t expected such a bold move. Before she could react, he caught her. _Caught her_ , meaning he grabbed her with both hands, pulled her into him and held on tightly.

She was so close now, she could hear his heartbeat increase through his chest, something she was sure he could do for her too. Hearing his breath wasn’t unusual, but now she could actually feel it on her neck. It smelled of those bad cigarettes she was beginning to tolerate, while his shirt smelled like his cooking.

Toph realized they’d been standing still like that for some time, and his hand were still holding her just as tightly.

“I think you got me.” It came out more like a whisper than she wanted.

“Yeah…” He let go and took a full step away. “Anyway, thanks. This… I think it helped a lot.”

“You want to try and bend some metal now?” She asked, but he was already by the door. She heard a switch flip, bringing his light back on.

“Nah, I think I had enough for today, honestly.” He grabbed his jacket. “You can keep the rest of the cake, Chief. And see you Monday?”

“Sure.”

Kanto gabbed the doorknob forcefully and then with a loud sound ripped it off.

“I didn’t try-”

“You bended it!” Toph moved to him and took the doorknob from him. It was all bent out of shape. It was undoubtedly metalbending.

“Yeah, but I don’t think I’m practiced enough to put it back.”

“No problem, I’ll do it.” She nodded and he started towards the stairs.

**oooooooooo**

Toph tried to get Kanto off her mind the whole way home with little to no success. She thought about going back to work, but it seemed like every fucking case reminded her of him too. She had no idea what had her so worried about him all of a sudden. There was no reason to worry. He cracked metalbending! He finally had one over on those other dummies.

He was that much closer to getting that third ring, which would get him awfully close to finishing their deal. They settled on a criminal about a month ago. A guy named Tri. And when Kanto lead her to him, they’d be done. Him and Ling would move away and there would be no more sneaking around. Was that it?

She didn’t want to think about it. Any of it. It was weird, since she usually loved imagining criminals getting what they deserved. And Kanto deserved to get his new life as much as Tri deserved a life in prison.

Her next idea for distracting herself was to visit Mr. and Mrs. Avatar. But she didn’t feel welcome there. Not like she used to. Even when Aang was miraculously home in the evenings, Katara and him had their hands full with little Kya and Bumi. Of course, they let her in. Katara gave her some dinner, which tasted like dog food now that she’d tried Kanto’s cooking.

And she left. She didn’t want to intrude. The kids had some kind of fever, both of them. But at least now she could think about what shitty friends she had, not about Kanto. That is, until she fell asleep. She couldn’t control what her mind came up with then.

Toph dreamed of their game in the dark. Same as it happened. Kanto sliding on the table, grabbing her, the smell of him… Then something happened, that definitely didn’t _really_ happen. Instead of pulling away, he leaned in and kissed her. And just like that she was kissing back. Next thing she knew, he had her pinned against a wall, kissing her neck and then…

She woke up on her couch at home.

_That doesn’t mean anything_.

It was her first thought upon waking up. It happened to people… Dreams were nonsense. Maybe it just meant that she liked being his friend, that she’d miss him in her life?

No, she had very unfriendly thoughts about him while awake sometimes. Too bad there was nothing she could do about them. He basically worked for her and their situation was dangerous enough without bringing all this shit into it.

Luckily, or rather unluckily for her, this was something she was particularly good at. Not telling people she had a crush on them.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here we go… First little sparks and whatnot…
> 
> I’m particularly proud of this chapter for some reason. I had fun writing it.
> 
> And about Kanto being an incredible cook… It just popped into my head and wouldn’t go away... I don’t know about anyone else, but to me it fits well because our girl Toph, although amazing, isn’t really all that domestic, so he could balance her out in the pair.


	4. Friend Who Happens to Be Funny, Charming and Attractive

**_Week 28_ **

“You’re in?”

“I’m in, baby!” Kanto bended the door closed behind himself.

Toph put two fingers from each hand into her mouth and gave him a wolf whistle, to which he responded with a mock bow.

“Thank you kindly…” Then he straightened and threw her his keys, which she caught from her spot at the table. “The little one is a perfect metalbended copy of the one that opens an office with all the triad records which we will be slowly, but surely, reviewing one by one over the next few weeks. Us: 1, Platinum locks: 0.”

“I’m so happy, I’m not even gonna ask how.” She fiddled with the keys while he came over and sat across from her. “But how?”

“Wasn’t actually that hard…” He put his feet on the table. “They hired a new guard, a girl. Seduced her, copied the key and then we decided we should see other people.”

“Seduced her?” Toph laughed.

“What’s so funny? Yeah… I seduced her.”

“It’s been less than a week.”

“You don’t need more if you know what you’re doing.” He lit a cigarette. “If you have my moves…”

“Moves?” Toph couldn’t stop smiling. That was some commitment from him… Or maybe he just didn’t care about the emotional side of it all.

“I can’t blame the girl, really… With what I was sending her way, no woman could resist for long.”

“No woman?”

“I meant, no woman who can see the…goods.”

Toph laughed some more. “Admit that you got lucky. Those operations don’t always work. Doesn’t matter that you’re attractive.”

“How would you know that I’m attractive?” He let his feet fall down to the floor. “Did you, like, ask someone? Can you sense it with bending?”

“Can you?”

“No, but I suck compared to you… Can you really sense everything? I feel suddenly naked and intrigued. My two favorite emotions…”

“I don’t think naked is an emotion.”

“It could be.”

“Excuse me?”

A pause.

“Sorry, Chief. I’m a bit tipsy… I had to go out drinking with a few guys to talk about maybe finally getting that third ring. I’m talking nonsense.”

“Yeah,” She relaxed. “Well, for the record I can’t feel _everything_ , but it’s pretty easy to figure out who’s attractive by how they act and how other people act around them. Heartbeats and whatnot.”

“Ah… I see. So you’ve figured me out?”

“By how fucking smug you are you’d have to be one of the most attractive men I’ve ever not seen.”

“I don’t know about _most_ , but I’m fairly popular with the girls. I don’t think I’d disappoint…” He paused. “How about you? Do you know about yourself?”

“No.” The joy in her face suddenly dissipated. “It doesn’t really matter…”

“I know. I could tell you.”

Why did they always have to go there? She didn’t give a fuck about how she looked.

“I don’t really care. I wouldn’t add to my value as a-”

“Fine.” He sighed. “I’d want to know if I was that hot, but whatever…”

Toph froze. She wasn’t expecting that… People have complimented her on her appearance before, but usually just her friends or her family who all had a reason to say it. Not like she could check… His heart didn’t signify a lie, though. Now, why did that make her feel that good?

She was sure she was blushing now. Her cheeks were burning. Since no other idea came to mind, she turned from him.

“Are we gonna get any work done today or are you gonna keep screwing around?”

“You’re right.” He straightened in his chair. “Let’s get to it. So the documents…”

**oooooooooo**

**_Week 29_ **

Toph could smell the food all the way from the stairwell.

“Is that roast duck?” she asked from the door.

“You know it.” She caught Kanto setting the table with his metalbending, using it to practice his accuracy. “Just in time, as always, Chief.”

By what she could sense, he needed a whole lot more practice.

“You’re a lifesaver…” She sat down and dug in. “I just came back from a two day stake out. So obviously I’m starving, and grimy, and exhausted.”

“One of my _friends_?”

“No, actually. Red Monsoon Triad…”

“Got ‘em?”

“Course I did.”

“Got someone there making you food?” He only then took his first bite.

“No, you’re a special case.” She moaned. “Spirits, this is good…”

“Well, you should know, you’re eating food prepared by someone in the third triad ring,” Kanto said and then gave her tired brain time to figure it out.

“You’re kidding?” She dropped her utensils. “You’re on fire, Hotshot!”

“Guess, they just recognize talent…”

“When?”

“Five days ago. Got the tattoo to prove it.”

“Show me.” She scooched together with her chair to sit by him. This was it, they were so close to finishing what they started now. Tri was fourth ring, directly in charge of Kanto now. They’d have him soon.

He took her hand and placed it on his forearm. Then he traced the third ring with her fingers.

“This time I had to get a real tattoo to cover it up. So only people who know what to look for could pick out the rings.”

“I… I think I can feel it this time. It’s all of this, isn’t it?” Toph could feel the lower half of his forearm was a little bit raised.

“Yeah, it’s not healed yet…”

“Does it hurt?” She pulled her fingers back.

“No, no… I went to a real pro guy. The way he does it, it’s done hurting in two days.”

She traced the shape again. It did dawn on her eventually that stroking his arm wasn’t the most professional way to conduct their meeting, but it was somewhere in the back of her mind. They way back, hidden behind the joy of their success. She had a guy deep in the triad and no one had any fucking idea.

“So what’d you get?”

“The cover? It’s a flower.”

“Why? I hear people get serpents, dragons, moose lions and from all the things in the world you choose…”

“Mine’s just as dangerous. It’s a Rhododendron.”

“Try saying that fast three times…”

“It’s poison.”

“So you thought you’d match your personality?”

“Shut up.” He snapped, causing her to grin from ear to ear. “It’s a Pai Sho tile. Ling’s favorite… So much so, he once swallowed all six from the only set we ever had.”

“Why in the world…”

“We were hungry.” Kanto sighed. “And he was little, and alone most times, and it was colorful and shaped like a cookie. But he was fine in the end… It just popped into my mind as I was getting the tattoo. I didn’t really give it that much thought…”

She chuckled. “You really should have. That thing stays on even when you’re free.”

“I don’t care. With this we’ll get Tri in no time. I hope you’re looking for apartments in real nice neighborhoods. And I mean _real nice_ …”

“There’s already one waiting, _Rhododanion_...” She tapped the tattoo.

“It’s Rhododendron.”

“All I hear is Rhodod- _moron_.”

He laughed and shook his head. “Seriously, shut up.”

“Make me.” She grinned and then, just like that, Kanto’s lips were on hers. He was kissing her. Hard.

Before her brain or any part of her body could come up with a response, he pulled away.

“Woah,” he started. “I’m sorry… I thought I was picking up on something… I crossed a line. It won’t happen again.”

“You done?”

“Yeah.”

This time she kissed him. Harder.

Her hands cupped his face, then they were in his hair, but it wasn’t enough. He was too far away. He’d been too far away for too long. She shoved him backwards and straddled him in the chair. His heartbeat _spiked_ at that. Which meant she was going a good job… This was better than the dream.

He embraced her then too and begun kissing down her neck when she jerked.

“Wait,” she said, and he did. But she didn’t get up from his lap. “This is dumb, we’re doing a dumb thing aren’t we?”

“I do a lot of dumb things, and this doesn’t feel like that. So it’s your call.”

The thought of just getting up and resuming their business as usual after she just jumped him was unimaginable. They’d keep it secret like all the other things… They could do anything.

“Oh, why not…” Toph leaned back down to kiss him again, and she felt his mouth try to form a smile.

“Bedroom?”

“If you know what’s good for you.”

Kanto stood up then, lifting her with him. She used her feet to hold on as he carried her to the bedroom slowly. This way they didn’t have to stop kissing, they spent enough time not kissing already.

Toph usually hated being carried like this. It meant she couldn’t sense anything except the person she held onto, but this time she was okay with it. She didn’t care about anything besides him now anyway.

**oooooooooo**

“It _was_ dumb!” Toph rolled over with the sheet covering her, so that her face was buried in a pillow. “I can’t believe I did something so stupid…”

He speech was a bit muffled by the pillow. She didn’t really want Kanto to hear it, it didn’t have anything to do with him. He was wonderful, it was just that it would make things so complicated now.

“You calling me stupid?” He asked, turning to his side so his face was right next to hers.

“No, I should have put a stop to it.” She turned right side up again. “You basically work for me, that would already be bad enough, but we’re also a cop and a criminal. I could get super fired for that.” She rubbed her face in disbelief.

“Who’s gonna fire you? You’re the Chief.”

“It’s not like being a triad boss, I can’t do whatever the fuck I want. There’s the law.”

“And there’s a law against what we just did?”

“Actually, yeah.” She sat up. “And I kind of hold your whole future in my hand and now…”

“Thanks for reminding me. Now I do feel stupid.” He sat up. Then took something from the floor. She thought he’d start putting clothes on, but then she smelled smoke. Right before he laid back into the mattress next to her.

“Really?”

“Best time to do it.” He blew out smoke slowly and audibly. “I’m sorry you regret it. Should have kept my peasant hands to myself.”

He barely had time to finish before she punched his shoulder. With force.

“Don’t be disgusting, it’s not that! You know it’s not.”

“It wasn’t my choice becoming a criminal, you know?”

“I told you, it’s because it’s illegal. And we have a working relationship. Being too familiar tends to fuck that up.”

Toph couldn’t believe he could ever think she’d reject someone because of who their parents were. It was sick… She never thought about people like that, but she couldn’t stop others from looking at it that way.

Only this wasn’t just someone dating out of their class. This was a potential scandal. If by some miracle the press found out about what they just did, she knew how they’d spin it.

_Chief Beifong gives legal pardon to her triad boytoy…_

_Chief Beifong gets lucky in her search for information…_

_Chief Beifong bends over backwards to eradicate the Terra Triad…_

“Give me that.” she snatched the cigarette from his hand, then instead of throwing it away, like he expected, she put it in her mouth and took a puff.

“Chief?” He sounded so surprised. “Be careful, people tend to gag on their first cigarette.”

“Yeah…” She blew smoke from her nose. “Cause I’m a precious flower child that’s _never_ smoked before.”

“Aren’t you full of surprises today?” he teased. “You know, it’s such a filthy habit…”

“Hardly the biggest mistake I’ve made today.” She took another puff, then returned the cigarette just as he was about to light a new one.

“Alright. So we just won’t do it again.” He stood up, presumably to dress. “I think this might actually be good for us.”

“How so?” If he was about to say he got what he wanted now, and he was done with her in that way, she’d have to chug a rock at him… Those were the rules.

“I have to admit I’ve been using some of my thinking capacity to ponder if the rest of you is as beautiful as your face is.” She almost jumped him again after the way he said _that_. “We’ve been spending a lot of time together… It’s natural to think about it, but I think now that we blew off some steam, we’ll be alright for another six months.”

“That’s where I’m at too.” She barely recovered after hearing he’d been thinking about it to. “It happened, but it’s business as usual from now on.”

“Deal.”

“And Kanto, you can’t tell anyone, and I mean _anyone_ , about this. Not even when all of this is over.”

“Got it.”

“And I’m still in charge, you have to listen to what I say.”

“Understood.”

She stood up to dress too. But it felt wrong to leave it like that.

“For the record, I don’t regret the actual sex. At all…” She turned to him then, signaling she wanted him to say something too. Something telling her she wasn’t crazy, that they were on the same page about everything. She didn’t want him to feel…offended? Or used maybe? Spirits, this was a bad, bad decision.

“I sure hope not…” He whistled. “Because that was something. If I’d known what was instore for me, I would have gotten that ring in half the time.”

She smiled at him then, before turning around to find her shirt.

**oooooooooo**

**_Week 31_ **

“We have a problem,” Toph said, while lying naked on the bed.

“Yup.” Kanto laid next to her only half covered by a sheet.

“We can’t seem to stop.”

“Yeah.”

“This is the third fucking time, Kanto.” She wasn’t even sure how it happened this time. Last week he was feeding her some of his food, so naturally she had to do him right then and there on the table. But this week… They were just talking, the usual, some light planning and calculating, then suddenly his hand was on her… Yeah, it was his fault this time.

“Yeah, I hear you. Next time… I just won’t look at you. At all,” he said.

“I can assure you that not seeing someone, doesn’t mean you aren’t dying to fuck them.” She’d know.

“Then I’m out of ideas.” He sat up.

“I mean, it’s not like I can send someone else to do this… Maybe if we had something to kill the mood-”

“I was thinking we could keep doing it, just set up some ground rules.”

“That’ll do it.” She jumped to her feet. “Mood successfully murdered.”

“I just meant that we’re both adults and there is undeniably something _strong_ here, so maybe it wouldn’t be _such_ a disaster if we kept going. We could make sure it doesn’t interfere with work with a few simple rules.”

“Rules, huh?” She pulled a shirt down over her head. “Like what?”

“For example, it would be great if we could handle the business part first, and then put the time we have left to better use.”

“Work first, fuck later. Good rule. Got anything else?” She sat down next to him on the bed.

“Yeah. No biting.”

“You said you liked it!”

“I did. Too much, even. It weirded me out…”

She smirked proudly and started gathering her hair in a bun. “This goes without saying, but no one hears about this still. There’s no Toph Beifong in your life, no _some girl_ , nothing.”

“Of course.”

This was okay. She could handle this.

There were plenty of men she had similar deals with over the years. None of them were criminals or in any way involved with her work, but in her experience, everything went smoothly as long as everyone knew what was happening.

She was beginning to doubt she even had any feelings for Kanto. Sure, she hadn’t had any fuck buddies since she met him, but that had to be because she was overworked. This would release some long overdue tension.

This was just physical, and she could handle that.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A shorter chapter this time. I honestly don’t have the patience to write a real slow burn, I even get impatient reading them sometimes… But even though all of this happens quickly in the story, for them it’s been like half a year so that seems like a slow start.


	5. Friend with Benefits

**_Week 37_ **

Toph stopped before the apartment door. She patted her hair one more time to check if anything was sticking out where it shouldn’t be. It was new to her, letting her hair down in any situation besides when she slept. Yet, she started letting it down before she went to meet Kanto. That, of course, meant she had to start letting it out on random days too, as to not raise suspicion of where she was going. But it was all worth it to feel his heart jump once he laid eyes on her.

She could feel him in the living room now, so she entered, quickly bending off her armor. There it was. The little heart jump.

Toph also paid more attention to what she wore in recent weeks. She couldn’t pick out things that looked good, but she did start wearing some outfits that felt good under her fingers more often.

She barely had time to close the door, Kanto was already on her. As they kissed, she suddenly realized she couldn’t taste cigarettes. Not at all. Even the smell of them was replaced with something else, a cologne of some kind. And while Toph hated perfumed noble boys, and usually just preferred someone’s natural sent, this new smell was driving her crazy.

She cupped his face to gently push him away. He was even freshly shaven.

“The things you do to me…” he whispered.

Toph’s mind was so fogged up by that point that she forgot why she broke their kiss in the first place. She took his hand then and started leading him into the bedroom. He pulled back before they reached the bed.

“What?”

“I thought maybe you’d like to do it here.” He pulled her to a place on the floor where he’d placed a blanket beforehand. “It would mean you’d _see_ more, right?”

“I mean, yeah… What, you unsatisfied with the service, Hotshot?”

“Not even a little bit. I just… Though it’d be better for you. If you could sense everything, I mean.”

He got his answer when she shoved him down and climbed on top of him.

“You want it, you got it, Kanto.”

**oooooooooo**

Once they were done, Toph collapsed onto his chest, and stayed there, since the blanket wasn’t wide enough for both of them to lie side by side.

“We’re breaking the _no cuddling_ rule.” She ended the silence.

“I’m a criminal.” He kissed the top of her head, breaking another rule forbidding kissing that didn’t lead to sex. “I can’t be trusted. Remember?”

Toph was probably lying to herself. Too bad she couldn’t use her truthseeing to root out that. She had all kinds of feelings for this man. The rules were _not_ working at all. What they did do, is add an extra level of excitement to everything because… Well, breaking rules was always fun.

“We have to get to it soon. I have a meeting.”

“More fun than this one?”

“Not possible.” She started getting up and he reluctantly let her go. “But I really need your help with planning that raid, Hotshot.”

He dressed before her and went to the living room. She, however, showed up to their _meeting_ in trousers and breast bindings with her hair unbound and wild down her back. By the way Kanto almost choked on the now-cold tea she could tell she looked good like that.

“Fuck.”

“What?” she teased. She knew what. Her, that’s what.

“Nothing.” He coughed some more. “This is how the building looks like.”

They couldn’t use maps and blueprints, of course, but Kanto never let it stop them. They used earth models. Right now, in the middle of the living room stood a simplified replica of the building Toph needed to raid with her officers created entirely from Kanto’s memory of the place.

“The main transactions usually take place here.” He shoved a few metal bolts inside the model through a window. “So it’s my guess that’s where you’re most likely to catch them red-handed.”

“This is the best you can do? Really? It barely looks like a building.”

“How’d you know how it really looks like?”

“No building’s that crooked.” She moved her foot, slightly, and straightened the model, then did the same thing with her other foot opening the model to the side so they could see the room layout better.

“Woah. I’m sorry, precision really isn’t my thing.”

“It seems to me earthbending isn’t really your thing. You should stick to cooking.” She smirked.

“Toph Beifong, did you just tell me to _stay in the kitchen_?”

“I also need you in the bedroom.”

He faked a gasp at that, and she punched his shoulder.

“Why do I still like you, knowing you’re such an asshole?” she asked.

“Maybe because you’re a little bit of an asshole too…”

“Let’s just get back to it.” She turned towards the model. “Where do you think I should enter?”

“That’s what _he_ said.” She tried not to laugh, she really did, but they both ended up bursting out laughing.

Toph ended up being late to her meeting by about an hour. She didn’t give a fuck, she was Toph Beifong and she was worth waiting for.

**oooooooooo**

**_Week 38_ **

As Toph’s officers flooded the ground floor of an old, abandoned florist shop, she made her way up the stairs. Once she was alone on the next floor, she slammed her foot downwards a few times to really feel where everyone was. Five people on the top floor, just as Kanto promised, but the two he said would be downstairs were in a room down the hall. And there were footsteps approaching…

“What’s a nice girl like you, doing in a place like this?” Kanto whispered, appearing from behind a corner.

“You should be two blocks away by now.” She checked their surroundings with her seismic sense again, carefully making sure that no one can overhear them.

“The guys wanted me to stand guard.” He pointed back at a closed door in the hall where Toph could feel two people sitting at a table.

“Well, you’re doing a great job.” She grinned, then pulled him forward by his shirt and into a brief kiss.

“So you like to live dangerously, Chief?”

“You bet.”

He responded by lounging at her and pinning her to the wall. The kiss that followed was neither quick nor gentle. Why the fuck did all the sneaking around make it better? She’d almost forgotten where they were and moaned. Almost.

“To be continued.” He finally pulled away and took a whole step from her to the door he was guarding. “And another thing. That kid cop. Fei. He works for us.”

“You have proof?” Not the kid. Why the kid? He seemed so… dense, but goodhearted. And now she finds out he’s secretly the kind of sicko who’s so at home with lies that he can fool her.

“Tomorrow. At the meeting.”

“Then we have two things to continue.” She stepped closer to both him and the door. The thugs were still at the table. “Here’s what we do. I throw you through the door, you pretend to be hurt. Then while I’m arresting them, you slip out the window _without me noticing_. You good to go?”

“Wait, wait, back up. You what me through what?” He barely had time to finish before he was hurled towards the door.

**oooooooooo**

**_Week 39_ **

“Chief in the house!” Toph let herself into the main building on Air Temple Island. “Does anyone remember inviting me?”

“In here!” Katara yelled from the laundry room. Toph knew where she was all along, but people didn’t really like it when she made it obvious.

“Where are Aang and the little monsters?” She couldn’t feel them in the house. “It’s not gonna be much of a family dinner just you and me.”

“They’re playing in the garden.” The woman bended over clumsily, trying to pick up something. “Toph, could you…?”

“Yeah, yeah, Two-for-one. You just have to ask.” Toph came forward and lifted the hamper full of laundry. “I can’t believe that Airhead has you doing all the work while he just goofs around all day long… When are you gonna pop, anyway?”

Katara put a hand on her belly bump. “A month or two from now. Soon. And thank you, as always, for using such beautiful phrases…”

“Where do you want this?” Toph straightened with the hamper, turning towards the door.

“Toph, is that…a hickey?” Katara suddenly asked, a bit of joke in her voice.

“What are you thinking? Of course, it’s not… I can’t believe you’d even- I got hurt on the job.”

Well, she was _technically_ on the job. She wasn’t sure if that made it better or worse… Oh, she’d kill Kanto when she got her hands on him. Or at least give him something to explain to the people in his life.

“You can tell me, you know. I’ll keep quiet about it, I swear.”

“Tell you what? How I was too close to an explosion and got hit by shrapnel?” That was… not a good lie, but not terrible. She’d commit.

“Sure, and I’m just getting fat from too much cake…”

“Sorry to disappoint, Snoops, but my love life’s as boring as it ever was.” Toph left the room, going for their clothesline outside.

“Well, maybe I’d be less _intrusive_ ,” Katara followed. “If you sometimes shared things with me.”

“Next time I get hurt in the line of duty, you’ll be the first to know.”

“You know that’s not what I meant-” Katara suddenly stopped. “He’s kicking.”

“How do you know it’s a he?”

“Just come here and feel.” The woman reached for Toph’s hand.

“I’d rather not. I prefer them when they’re out. This just gives me the creeps…”

“You alright, sweetie?” Aang came walking from the other side of the island, carrying a mumbling little girl. A hyperactive little boy followed them, running in a zig-zag pattern for no apparent reason.

“Just perfect.”

“Toph, you’re here already?” He led Kya down to run to her mother. “What’s with the bruise? Did you get hurt at work?”

“Yes. Thank you for asking, Aang, that is exactly right,” Toph said before turning to Katara. “See, you’re the weird one.”

**oooooooooo**

**_Week 40_ **

Toph sat on a kitchen counter while Kanto made scrambled eggs seasoned with this or that. Whatever it was, it smelled divine. With the help of his breakfasts and all the action that happened before, she’d grown to love it when the dice determined they had to meet in the morning.

She wasn’t exactly dressed for cooking. She wasn’t exactly dressed for most things, since the only thing she had on was Kanto’s shirt, and it wasn’t buttoned-down at the front.

“Close the shirt, you’re distracting.” He was wearing the other half of his outfit, his trousers, while he sprinkled this and that over the eggs in the pan.

“Feel free to admire me.” She smirked.

“I would, but the eggs will burn.”

“Well, you’re no fun.” She did up the buttons. He waited for her to finish, then walked to her.

“You bored, huh?”

She nodded. Then he grabbed her and carried her clumsily to the stove.

“You ever cook anything?” He turned her towards the frying pan, then stood behind her and guided her hand to the handle.

“Just some really basic stuff. It turned out edible.”

“Well, edible is not enough. I’ll teach you my scrambled eggs recipe today.”

“I’m blind, Hotshot. When I cook, I’m just happy not to bite into something raw or charcoaled. I don’t need all the bells and whistles.”

“Oh, come on, it’s time I taught you something useful.” He took her other hand and together with it adjusted the intensity of the stove. “Cooking is mostly about smells and sounds, anyway.”

“Sounds?”

“Yeah, like the sound of oil sizzling when you know something is ready.” He took something of the counter and let her smell it. “What do you think this is?”

She didn’t recognize it. “Unless it’s salt or pepper, I won’t be much help.”

“I’ll teach you.” His kiss was warm on her neck. “This is thyme.”

After another ten minutes and just as many fancy spices, they moved from the kitchen to the dining table. Toph was delighted to find these eggs they made together tasted just as good as his always did.

“So how’s…” She took another bite, finishing her serving. “That thing with the smugglers going? You friendly with them yet?”

“Actually, it’s not doing so hot. I had to abort.”

“Why?”

“I made their boss angry.”

“The fuck could you say to him that would make him not wanna do business?” She leaned over and helped herself to the rest of his food, since he wasn’t eating it anyway.

“It’s a _she_ and she got grabby one day, so I shot her down. She didn’t like that…”

“You did _what_ , Hotshot? We needed that connection.”

“I know, but she wanted a lot more of a connection than I was ready to make. I’ll find some other way… I always do.” He shut up then, but it ended up being just a short pause. “I… I work for you, but you can’t make me sleep with someone.”

“You never had that problem before. I mean, how unattractive can this woman be?”

“It’s not that!” He got up suddenly, then turned from her. “It’s really not. It’s… There’s someone now I can’t stop thinking about, so it doesn’t feel right.”

“I knew this was about me-”

“No, it’s about this busty, Water Tribe waitress...” He gave her a moment to feel the lie. “Of course, it’s about you!”

“Then we’re done! When we started, we said we won’t let it affect anything, but clearly you can’t handle it.”

_Please… Please, no._

Even as she said the words, she was already thinking of how to take them back. She didn’t wanna be _done_ , not now, not anytime soon.

“We didn’t discuss this sort of situation! I had no idea how you’d react. You have to understand, Toph, that you have complete control over my new life. If you got mad or-”

“You really think I’d do that to little Ling and you cause I got a bit, what, _jealous_?”

“I didn’t know, I… I don’t.”

“Unbelievable…” She sensed it was a lie, so she turned around and started leaving. He barred her way.

“Stop listening to my heart.”

“So you can lie easier? I can detect your half-assed bullshit even without my-” She stopped when he lifted her and leaned her back against the wall. It was probably to break her contact with the floor.

“Just stop.”

“You understand I can use the wall to do it too?”

“Shut up.”

“Just-”

“Shut. Up.” He said and she listened. “Just let me tell you something.” A pause. “I’ve never had this.”

“A woman pressed against a wall?”

He shook her lightly, so she’d stop laughing. She couldn’t help it. That’s what she did when she was nervous.

“I meant _us_. We talk, we cook, we laugh… We get each other. We have amazing sex.”

“ _Amazing_ sex.”

“I never had all that. With anyone. Ever. You can’t blame me for not wanting to fuck it up if there’s another way to get that info. Fuck, even if there wasn’t… I wasn’t afraid of you going back on our deal. I knew I’d have to tell you about it, and I didn’t want you to… I didn’t want to lose this.”

“Kanto, what are you saying?”

“I know how witness protection works. I know I won’t be able to see you after this deal is over. But for now…” His heart went crazy. “Is there a way this could work that doesn’t include you getting mad when I tell you I don’t want to fuck other girls? Cause I don’t, and I won’t. I’m a simple man, and I can only think about you.”

“So you’re saying you wanna date me, Hotshot?”

He answered her with a shrug, but his heart told her he was still eagerly awaiting her answer.

“You know, we still can’t _know each other_ when we’re out of here.”

“I know that.”

“So what will change, Kanto?”

“For one, we can throw those stupid rules out the window. We’re ignoring them anyway…”

“You won’t be able to ever tell anyone about this. Ever.”

“I don’t care. Can’t I just want you for myself for a short while until we catch that fucker Tri?”

She nodded. “Let’s date then. With hand holding and all that sappy shit.”

He kissed her then, quickly, before mouthing: “Really?”

She must’ve been smiling so much he was afraid it was a big joke.

“Yeah.” And she still couldn’t stop smiling. “You know, I never had something like this either.”

She knew she’d made a mistake then. She was just making this harder for herself… He’d leave and while he’d have his brother and new life, what would she be left with? Just the memories of this to replay in her head over and over and over as she spends her life alone.

“I do have a counteroffer. How about we forget about the mission and just get you and Ling out now? You’ve done plenty…” She grinned expecting him to start jumping with joy, but all she heard was silence. Nothing but awkward silence.

He deserved it. He really did his part well. And she was scared. Scared she was really starting to get attached as their time together was getting close to its end.

“What’s wrong?” she asked.

“I… I just… I’m so close to getting him busted, and I…”

“Kanto, I’m offering you your freedom here. Get with the program.”

“No, not yet. It doesn’t feel right. You know, Tri straight up sells people. He kills others for fun. He’s worse than the Boss, I swear. I want you to get him. The Shades would be a little bit better for everyone. I think I finally get why you guys do what you do…”

“You know, at this point, I think it’s us guys… You catch criminals too. Better than some of my guys who carry around a badge. Have you ever thought about it?”

“How I’m better than most cops? Sure.”

Toph shoved him. “You know what I mean…”

“Being a cop?” Kanto laughed.

“I’m serious. You’ve got good instincts, Hotshot.” She punched his shoulder.

“I would look hot in that uniform.”

“I wouldn’t be able to tell…”

“It’s not all about you. Can’t I look hot for myself?” He placed a kiss on her forehead. “If it’s okay with you, after this is done, I’d like to just be a cook for the rest of my life.”

“We’ll be a chief and a chef…”

“Catchy.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Alright, this time I put in a little bit of Aang and Katara just because they’re still Toph’s friends and keeping secrets from your friends is tiring.
> 
> I usually don’t bother coming up with chapter titles, because I SUCK at titles, but with this story it kind of made sense to me, since the title of the whole thing was a question, to make every chapter title an “answer” describing who Kanto is to Toph at any point in the story.
> 
> Anyway, that’s it for a few days.


	6. Boyfriend

**_Week 45_ **

At first Toph didn’t even notice him there. She could’ve sensed him if she’d focused on her feet, but her thoughts were wondering. Her officers informed her that the Terra Triad had been very active that day, so she didn’t think Kanto would be able to make it. They had a system for those situations too. Every week they threw the dice and chose two pairs of date and time in the next week. If one of them wasn’t able to make it to the first one, they just had to come to the apartment early and place the broom in a predetermined position.

“Kanto?” Eventually, she stood close enough to him, so she felt him. He was lying on the floor, clutching the broom.

Instead of an answer he moaned something incomprehensible. In a breath she was on her knees next to him.

“Why did you come then, you idiot?!” She tried to help him up, but was surprised when her hands came off bloody.

“Didn’t wanna scare you…” He tried to chuckle there at the end, as she helped him sit up, but it turned into a cough.

“How bad is it?” Toph hated this. Not being able to access the damage on her own. He’d downplay it like the idiot he was.

“Not bad…”

_Lie_.

“What do I do?” She bended off her armor in a hurry.

“Just get me to the bed. I put gaze and shit in the cupboard there.”

She pulled him to his feet. Since there was bleeding, she prioritized being fast over being gentle.

“Just put your arm around my- Or just fall on me, that works too.” She was gentler when putting him on the bed, or at least she tried. He was getting quiet, she didn’t like that.

“So who did this to you so I can fuck them up?” Toph asked as she rummaged in the cupboard for his supplies.

“Triple Threats. This one motherfucker had a knife…”

“You can metalbend.” She was back at his side with the little box of medicine and gaze.

“That’s why he didn’t hit anything important, while I definitely did.”

“I’ll rip off your shirt now.” She pulled her sleeves back.

“Oh, Chief- Aah!” He swallowed the rest of that scream as she opened his bare chest to the room. Next, he handed her the alcohol from the box and she disinfected the wound. That scream he couldn’t hold back. She kept teasing him about it for the rest of the time it took the two of them to patch the wound.

“I couldn’t go home,” he started, once she was back from washing her hands. “I didn’t want Ling to see me like this.”

“So you thought, _I’ll find Toph, she can’t see anything. Then I’ll drop dead there right in front of her useless eyes, she won’t mind_.” She used a fake manly voice.

“Do you know what bedside manner is?” He asked as she sat beside him on the bed, but didn’t wait for an answer. “Well, yours straight up sucks.”

After hearing that, she leaned in, careful not to touch him more than necessary, and kissed him gently.

“How’s that?”

“I’m healed.”

She smiled against his lips, then continued, deepening the kiss. It was a small whimper that brought her back to reality and made her pull away. He didn’t need a good make-out now, he needed meds and a decent night’s sleep.

“You’ll stay here?”

“Yeah.” He took her hand into his, weakly. “Stay with me?”

“You know I would…”

He sighed and pulled his hand back.

“Once we catch Tri, I go into witness protection right away?”

“Right.”

“So I’m someone else _and_ I don’t see you anymore?”

“Not unless it’s official police business. For your protection… It’s already dangerous to leave you in the same city.” He didn’t say anything to that. “Kanto?” She played with his hair a bit. She’d grown to love doing that.

“I did all of this for a better life.” He reached out to stroke her cheek. “But Toph, it’s not going to be a better life without you.”

And what the fuck was she supposed to say to that?

**oooooooooo**

**_Week 49_ **

When Toph entered, Kanto was in the kitchen by the sink.

“You know, you’re welcome to soak this stuff when you’re done.”

He was, apparently, doing dishes.

“C’mere, I have a surprise for you.” She plopped the massive folder onto the table before bending her armor off.

Kanto stopped at the door out of the kitchen.

“Oh, a different kind of surprise.” He did his zipper back up.

“How would _that_ be a surprise?” She smirked, then shoved the folder across the table where he stopped it.

“What’s all this then?”

She took a deep breath, she needed it.

“I couldn’t stop thinking about what you said. About seeing me after the deal is over.”

“Forget about that, I was just… Just wishful thinking, that’s all.”

“What if we did it?”

“Continued dating after I’m in witness protection?” He didn’t sound pleased. “I thought there was nothing we could do about that.”

“There was a time people thought there was nothing an earthbender could do to get out of a metal box. But then I happened.” She paused for effect. “So I read some laws…”

“ _You_ read?”

“I got a secretary to do it. I had her read me a whole lot of random shit too, to hide my intentions, so it took for-fucking-ever.”

“I can imagine, and I’m touched since I know what passionate hatred you have for the law. But-”

“Let me finish. It turns out, there’s more than one way to do witness protection. Since my police force only has jurisdiction in Republic City, a lot of people choose to just get their new documents and a little bit of money from us before going out on their own to hide outside the city, usually in the Earth Kingdom. What’s important is, the Republic City Police is no longer responsible for them in any way after they leave.”

“And you didn’t know this, being the Chief and all?”

“Okay, Judgy, do I criticize how you do your lying, sneaking around and general law-breaking?”

“Almost constantly, but I get your point.”

“My idea is, we go with that option for you and Ling. That way there’s no one keeping tabs on you. The only ones who’ll need to know who you used to be are a few lawyers and me.”

“And the officers who arrested me. And everyone from any triad I ever came in contact with.”

“I thought of that. I’ll talk to my guys, tell them it was all pretend, that you were with me. So we have that part settled. As for your guys… Do you know why I never lock my apartment door, Kanto?”

“Extreme cockiness?” He guessed, like he wasn’t guilty of it too.

“It’s pointless, because there is no one dumb enough to risk stealing from me. Our in-city witness protection isn’t perfect either. I may not be able to protect you every second of every day, but my reputation will.”

“Do you wanna know why _I_ never lock my door?” He didn’t wait for an answer. “It’s pointless, because even the children in the Shades know how to pick locks. What I’m saying is, those people are not to be underestimated.” He sighed. “But putting that aside for a second, what about your job?”

“I thought of that too. All we need is to hide you and Ling in my apartment for about a month after. I think that’s enough time between you officially stopping your informant gig and officially becoming my boyfriend. It’ll be suspicious, but it won’t be a scandal.”

“Toph, I appreciate-”

“Just… Give it some thought, please.”

_Please, say yes. Just… Just say yes to me._

Instead of answering, he started walking around the table to her. “C’mere.” The hug was tighter than usual. “No one has ever worked this hard for me. At anything. Ever.” He kissed the top of her head.

“I’m kind of not ready to stop talking to you forever,” she said into his shoulder.

“I trust you. If Ling’s okay with it, we’re going for it.”

It was like someone lifted a bolder the size of Wan Shi Tong’s library from her chest in that moment.

“And you think he’ll-”

“Oh, he’ll say yes. Believe me.” Kanto loosened his grip a bit so he could look down at her. “I haven’t told you this, cause I didn’t want your head to get too big for the apartment, but Ling’s a bit of a fan.”

“Of me?”

“I didn’t even know until I told him you arrested me. He knew everything about you. So when I tell him that not only are we rich now, but we’re moving in with Toph Beifong who I’m currently dating… At first, he probably won’t believe me, but once I prove it, he’ll absolutely lose his shit.” He chuckled.

“Can’t wait… And I don’t think it’d be dangerous, it’d be like 24-hour police protection, really. I already bought myself an apartment with an extra room, so you could both move in and… And there’s a restaurant, practically next door to the place. Very good, very fancy… Only they lost their chef recently, and the new one is a disgrace. So the job front is settled. As for schools, the closest one is kind of far, but it’s one of the best in the city and-”

“How many bathrooms?” He interrupted.

There was a tense second before he broke out laughing, then leaned down to kiss her.

“Toph, we grew up in an apartment the size of this room and you’re worrying about schools and stuff…”

“I just want you to be happy.”

“I am happy. Just three more weeks, then Tri goes to prison and I’m free.”

**oooooooooo**

**_Week 50_ **

Toph arrived first. It was a surprise, since she was very late. The broom wasn’t placed to signal he couldn’t make it. So he planned on showing up…

That’s why she took a seat and waited. It wasn’t uncommon. You couldn’t just tell your triad boss you were too busy this evening. So she waited, and waited and waited and just as she was about to give up an leave, she sensed Kanto’s form coming up the stairs. He ran, so at least he seemed to be aware of how late he was.

“You’re lucky. I was just about to-” Toph started just as the door to the apartment opened, but she stopped when the smell reached her. Blood. “What happened?”

“They… They…” And the rest that came from him was just uncoherent bumbling as he tried not to choke through the crying. Toph ran to him, put her hands around him and realized he was completely drenched in blood.

“They what? Do they know about you? Can you stand? Do we have to get Ling?” She cupped his face now. How was it covered in blood too?

“Ling’s dead.” He finally found the strength to say. “They killed him.”

Toph felt like someone kicked all the air out of her lungs. No, no… This couldn’t be happening! It was two weeks until the end, just two! They planned everything, they thought about everything! Ling wasn’t even involved! He didn’t even know… How was Kanto here if they knew?

“How?!” It wasn’t the most considerate thing to scream at him in that moment, but she couldn’t take it. His sobs.

_My fault._

_My fault._

_My fault._

“I couldn’t stop it… I couldn’t, Toph. I tried…”

“How did they find you out? Do we have to run?”

He just shook his head slowly. “They don’t know. They killed him for no good reason. For nothing… Boss did it to make an example out of him for the other kids…” Kanto fell to his knees. “I was there! I didn’t do anything… It happened in an instant, I didn’t even have time to…” The rest dissolved into sobs.

Toph took a deep breath, then sat on the floor next to him and held him as he cried.

“I hate them, Toph… I hate them! I’ll kill them all!” He screamed into her shoulder, yet she continued to hold him. “He was my little brother… I was supposed to take care of him! I failed…”

“You didn’t. You did everything you-”

“He was all I had! He was all I ever had…”

“No. Kanto, look at me.” She pulled away slightly, enough to allow him a view of her face. “You have me. I’m here. I’ll get you out of there, just like I promised. You don’t ever have to come back to those people.”

He took a few determined breaths then to calm his breathing, then wiped his eyes. “I have to.” He said more calmly than he had any right to. “Even when he cut Ling, I managed to keep my cover. I didn’t say a thing. Even though, I wanted to scream it should’ve been me.”

“Kanto-”

“They still don’t know I’m working with you. I’m not stopping with Tri. Oh, no… We’re keeping this going. We’re taking them all down, straight to the top.”

Toph leaned her forehead to his. “You just went through something terrible. I think it would be smart to get you away from the people-”

“No, they can’t get away with it! Not this time. Not ever again! I’ll kill them all! That man will pay for what he did to Ling, I don’t care if you help me or not, I have to do this…”

She knew better than to argue with a man in his state.

“Alright. Or course, I’ll help you.”

She could feel his heart relax a little after that. Then she heard him start crying again. Softer this time. All sorrow, no anger or hatred. She pulled him down to rest his head in her lap and he didn’t fight her.

Toph stayed with him all through the night just like that, on the floor sobbing. She had a meeting, but who the fuck could think about things like that now? At one point, Kanto started feeling sick and threw up more than she thought humanly possible. She made him change out of the bloody clothes then. He got a lot of it on her as well, so they both stripped to their underwear, scrubbed their hands and faces clean and moved to the bed.

It was more comfortable there, but neither of them slept. They spoke maybe a whole of twenty sentences during the whole night. She limited herself to only answering him.

In the morning, seemingly caused by nothing, Kanto got up to wash himself, then started putting on fresh clothes.

“I’m heading out.” He answered a question she was too afraid to ask. “I’ll see you in exactly a week. How does that sound?”

“You sure?”

“I’ll know then if I can keep it going.” She probably looked worried out of her mind, because he added. “Don’t sweat, I can play the part well.”

“Won’t it be suspicious you want to stay with them after?”

“If not for you, I wouldn’t have any other choice.” He walked to her then and put out his hand. She took it and let him pull her up from the bed and into a gentle embrace. “Thank you.”

“For not saving him?”

“For saving _me_.”

**oooooooooo**

**_Week 62_ **

A week after Ling’s death, Kanto vowed again to not stop until he put the leader of the Terra Triad behind bars. Toph wasn’t at all surprised by that, but what did leave her open-mouthed was the hundred-plus step plan he had prepared on how to do that in the least time possible. He only had time to give her the basics, but that all seemed…Doable.

Yet Toph worried. Kanto was different, and yes, it was unfair of her to expect him to be over his brother’s death and back to normal in just a week, but she couldn’t shake the feeling something very important was different. She wanted to ask him if he’d be too busy for the non-professional side of their relationship, but she was too afraid he’d say yes.

However, he proved her wrong in the coming weeks. He did spend almost every free moment working on his plan- Their. Their plan… But he made time for her too. Slowly, she felt him returning to normal. He cooked for her, kissed her as soon as she crossed the threshold to the apartment… They started meeting two times a week, Kanto had way more freedom from the triad after not leaving them because of Ling. It bought him a lot of trust. Trust he was working day and night to exploit to the fullest.

The more frequent meetings were good for business too, but they were also very good for the two of them and their relationship. That week, when Toph made it to the apartment, she found Kanto listening to the radio. When had he bought that?

And before she could complain about it being too conspicuous, he grabbed her hand and pulled her to him for a dance. They danced slowly, more so than the song demanded. The tone of the song could even be interpreted as chipper, if one did not listen to the words.

Toph had never danced with one of her _boyfriends_. She did sometimes allow Aang, Sokka or even Zuko to pull her onto the dance floor during this or that party, but this was different. She could rock gently like this with Kanto for eternity.

“I got the fourth ring,” he whispered, since her head was resting on his shoulder.

“That’s amazing. That’s quicker than in the plan.” She looked up at him.

“Yeah.”

“You can still stop and come live with me. I swear I’d keep hunting them.”

“No…” He kissed her forehead. “I want them to know it was me. I want them to know what was the mistake that cost them everything.”


	7. Love of Her Life

**_Week 66_ **

Toph stared up at the celling as something occurred to her.

“We’re better than them.” She was sprawled on the bed, Kanto smoking to her left.

“We’re better than who, dear?”

“ _Dear_?” She made a disgusted face.

“Just trying it out…”

She rolled her eyes and made sure he saw it cause if not it’d be pointless. “Katara and Aang, I mean.”

“At what?”

“At this.” She alternated pointing at him and herself.

“We’re a better couple?” he tried.

“Yes, hundred percent.”

“Not a valid comparison. They’re married and have… How many kids?”

“Three, as of recently.” Toph managed to miss the first two births, but with the third one she was there when the little troublemaker decided to join the real world.

She really had to stop calling him _the third one_ , his name was Tenzin.

“Yeah, how did that go?”

“What’s there to say… Katara screamed, Aang cried and the baby screamed _and_ cried.”

Kanto chuckled.

It was the truth…

“So what makes us better? You know how I like praise,” he said.

“Just… We just work. We get each other. We kick ass together. We’re not boring like them… And we have stuff to talk about, unlike them. They’re all about their kids.”

“Lucky kids…” Kanto sighed and Toph felt like a complete idiot. She didn’t exactly know what happened to his parents, but she knew they weren’t in the picture. Stupid, stupid, stupid…

“Was that the first birth you saw?” He changed the subject for her. “Yeah, I know you didn’t _see it,_ but you know what I mean… Did they let you hold the baby?”

“They did. Katara insisted. It- He was little and wiggly and…”

“What?” He insisted, seeing the reluctance on her face.

“He calmed down when I had him.” She grinned from ear to ear. “It was so weird actually… I mean, do I actually like kids?”

“Kids are easy. I swear, I thought it’d be harder to take care of Ling when he was little, but he was the perfect kid.” In the previous weeks, he’d gotten used to talking about his brother in the past tense. “Go ahead. Ask.”

“Ask what?”

“Go ahead, we’re together, you should know.”

“What happened to your parents?” Toph was sure she didn’t want to hear the story, but if he needed to tell her, she wouldn’t stop him. There was a time she was curious about it, but slowly she realized every new story she heard about life in the Shades made her feel horrible.

“Well, it’s a very unoriginal story actually. Daddy was a drug dealer, Mommy a drug addict. A perfect match, you know?” He laughed sarcastically. “Scorching ice was their poison. I still get weird when I smell the stuff. Our house was filled with it. I must have tried it first at like…five maybe. Don’t worry, I learned to stay away… Staying away from Mommy’s stash was a big rule.” He laughed again and Toph used the pause to scooch closer to him on the bed and lean her head against his chest. He welcomed her and accommodated the new position.

“Anyway,” he continued. “I don’t know if they ever liked each other, but by the time I could form memories Daddy only came by to deliver the Ice and ask me a few math questions to see if I was old enough to help with the work. Mom would scream at him, I remember, she needed me to stay and do housework. She’d actually teach me wrong math when he wasn’t there so he wouldn’t take me with him…”

“Where were you?”

“Ba Sing Se, Lower Ring. Up until I was a teenager. Since my parents weren’t interested in raising me, the street did. One day there was this older kid I knew, who came to us, street kids, and said he knew how to get food. Of course, I was interested, like a lot of other kids. He had us start off with an easy and fun job, then took us all to this man who wrote down our names and addresses, then fed us and told us to await instructions.”

“That’s how you joined a gang?”

“Pretty much. My first job was a delivery. To this day I don’t know of what… The triad was called _Wolfbats_ , that’s why I have a tattoo of one on my back.”

“You do? Where?”

Kanto sat up and placed her hand between his shoulders. “It’s not big. Hurt like a bitch, though. Got infected and everything… I almost didn’t pull through.”

“Your parents didn’t do anything?”

“Daddy wanted to kill me. Turned out the gang I joined was a rival to his. Luckily, I was a bender and he wasn’t. I split the whole fucking building in two and ran from home. Mom had bended it back into one piece when I came back. I swear, I still remember how disappointed she was to see me back. Dad didn’t come by after that. Not for a long time. When he did, I was already a real _Wolfbat_. Had to earn the money for Mommy’s drugs somehow, right?” He saw her expression. “In my defense she got really sick without it and I didn’t want to just watch her die. I see now I was making a mistake.”

“It’s not on you. Any of it,” she said softly.

“When Dad came back, he was worse off than Mom. He somehow got addicted to his own stuff. I told him to fuck off and I was ready to enforce, but Mom wanted him back, so I caved. That’s when Ling happened. And in the end, I was stuck taking care of two addicts and one newborn baby.”

“How old were you?”

“I don’t know. No one ever kept track of it. I guess like fifteen. I changed my mind often about how old I thought I looked. Mom wasn’t much help.” He sighed. “I’ll just cut to the end from here, Mom overdosed. After that I got Dad to quit. He died a few days later from withdrawal. His heart just gave out. I was out at the time. I took Ling then, it so happened the triad lost a turf war, so most of us relocated to the new city. Here. They changed the name to Terra Triad and the rest… Well, you know it.”

“If anyone deserves a better life, it’s you, Kanto. I’m so-”

“Don’t, okay… This kind of thing is so common, it’s boring. What is special is that I actually got a way out now. I got you.” He kissed the top of her head. “Which makes me the luckiest fucking guy I know…”

“Oh, stop.”

“How about you, Lady Beifong? Your folks are still around, right?”

“Not around here, thank the Spirits, but yeah. They’re hanging on.”

“What’s the story there?”

“I’m famous. You know that shit already…” She already had to correct some misconceptions earlier about the Blind Bandit part of her life.

“I want it from you, not some newspaper.”

“You’re really making me tell my whiny story after your little heart-wrenching moment here?”

“Yeah, I want to know.”

“You asked for it.” She looked up at him. “They didn’t like me or each other, so I ran away with the Avatar. They even teach that at schools now... I didn’t talk to them for years after that. Now we do talk but they still don’t like one single thing about me, so I try to keep visits brief.”

“Well, they obviously have no taste, since I adore everything about you. Rich fools…”

“Yeah, how could I forget? They’re also spoiled snobs, classists and bigots.”

“I think I get it. The kind of people that’d be hiding the silverware if you invited me to dinner there.”

“More like the kind of people that would rent a new estate to receive you if I invited you to dinner.” She chuckled.

“I don’t get it.”

“So the neighbors wouldn’t see you coming in, of course. _We all know that what complete strangers think of us it the most important thing in life._ ” She added that last part in a mock voice.

“There is something uniquely satisfying about knowing how mad it would make them to find out I’m doing their daughter.”

“Mom’s kind of okay at times actually. Dad’s the one that plain does not like me.”

“Maybe they wanted a girl…” Kanto barley finished, he got hit with a pillow. Toph held it over his face until he managed to knock her over and get on top. “And what now, huh? What now?” He had her hands pinned above her head. She responded be turning straight at him like she was staring. A second later the whole apartment started shaking like there was an earthquake. “Truce.”

He let go of her hands and leaned down to kiss her. The shaking stopped.

“If you want, I’ll introduce you to my parents someday. I just don’t think anyone would enjoy that.”

“Don’t worry, I’ll clean up for that.”

“You will not.” She poked a finger at him. “They’re gonna dislike you either way, might as well have fun annoying them.”

“Oh, so I should tell some of my triad stories at the table?”

“Definitely. My Dad will _love_ that…” She laughed.

“And I’ll call him _dude_. No. I’ll call him _Daddy_ …”

“I’ll call you _Daddy._ ”

They both burst out laughing at that.

“We’re not trying to give them heart attacks, are we?”

“No, just light heart palpitations… So make sure your hands are all over me during dinner.”

“Let’s practice now.”

She slapped away his hands as they threatened to take her shirt off for the second time that morning. She wanted to let him… But one of them had to think. And they didn’t have the time.

“Anyway, they are my parents, but they’re not my real family.” Toph sat up and Kanto followed her lead. “That’s Katara and Aang, Sokka, Zuko and Mai, Suki. My friends are my family.”

“I get that. I had someone like that too.” Kanto took her hand. “Old Man Bowen.”

“Who’s that?”

“My first job, coming to Republic City was waiting tables at that restaurant on-”

“You mean your fake, cover job was once real?”

“I was covering for someone else then. I was a kid still. And Bowen was, is, the chef there.”

“Wait, wait… Is that the man that taught you how to cook?” That couldn’t be true, or that restaurant would be the most famous in the whole city.

“Just the basics. He’s pretty good, but I’m better now. He was the one who recognized I had talent. The one who made me feel like I could be whatever I wanted. He even let me bring Ling to work while he was a toddler. We used to let him play in this big sink and make bubbles out of-” That last word escaped him as he got choked up. Toph squeezed his hand.

“It’s okay.”

“He’d laugh and laugh for hours…” He was full on crying by that point. “I miss him.”

“I know.” She squeezed his hand harder.

“I didn’t go see Bowen yet, after…” He sighed. “I… I don’t know how to talk to him about it without telling him about the plan.”

“Maybe you could-”

“No, no, Toph.” He brought her hand to his lips and kissed it gently before letting go and standing up. “That man loves me, but make no mistake, he’d turn me in. That’s how the Shades work.”

**oooooooooo**

**_Week 74_ **

When Toph barged into the apartment, Kanto was at the table reading the paper.

“How was your day, dear?” he asked.

“You know damn well how my day was! You fucking stabbed me, _dear_!”

“Is it bad?” He jumped to his feet.

“I like a little bit of flirting as much as the next girl, but this is becoming a bit much.” She bended her armor off, wincing slightly when she was forced to move her right arm. The knife had gotten her on the underside of the arm, just where her armor stopped near the armpit.

“It doesn’t look that bad. Come, I’ll patch you up.” He continued to the bedroom. “I know this is a bit rude, but what did you do with my switchblade?”

“Let’s just say, Kanto, that the only way you’re getting that back is if I administer it the same way you did.” She sat down on the bed as he got the medical supplies.

“Oh. In that case, relax as I make you all better.”

“Yeah… Or you could just, you know, not stab me. What the fuck were you thinking?” She took her right arm out of the sleeve.

“That you’d metalbend it away? You know, being my metalbending teacher and its inventor?” He pressed a gaze drenched in alcohol to the wound. “This may sting.”

“You’re supposed to say that before! Fuck!” She took the bottle into her other hand. “Is this the drinkable kind?”

“Afraid not.”

“Oh, kick a girl when she’s down, why don’t you…”

He stopped the work on the wound for a moment then. “I’m sorry. I really am.”

“I didn’t think you’d metalbend in front of them. It threw me off my game. What’s that about?”

It wasn’t the first time the two of them met outside the apartment in the middle of a conflict, but they usually kept their distance from each other. This time he went straight for her.

“I should’ve talked to you about it. I didn’t want to hurt you. I just wanted to show how ballsy I am by going after the Chief. I never imagined it’d actually hit you.”

“Well, excuse me for not counting you as an enemy out there…”

“Hey, no… I’m really sorry. I had to sell it. I’m in the game for fifth ring now. I’d never really-”

“I know.”

“Good.” He gave her a quick kiss and then continued working at the wound.

Only in a few minutes did it occur to him to ask: “Why didn’t you go to Katara with this? I’m sure it’d hurt less.”

“Why? You’re so good at this.”

“Don’t distract me with praise, Chief.”

“We had a deal about today.”

“You could’ve skipped it, I’d know why.”

“I… I just wanted to see you, okay? Have a problem with that?”

“Not at all.” Spirits, his smugness could be felt in the air.

“And you are good at this.” She tried moving her arm, once the bandage was secured.

“Think Katara’ll be jealous once she finds out I’ve been _healing_ you?”

“How’d she find that out?” Toph lied down onto the bed and he soon joined her.

“It’s the first thing I’m telling her when we meet.” He moved to put a pillow under her head. “To make her like me… I think it’s the only thing I do she’d approve off.”

“Are you kidding? Katara is so desperate for me to find a boyfriend, she’d just be happy I brought a man roughly my age.”

“Really?” He chuckled.

“Yeah, and if that’s not true, you can always share your life story. Just half of it should have her and the Avatar hugging you and sobbing.”

“Noted.” He whistled absentmindedly. “How about the others? Fire Lord?”

“I know you’re trying to distract me while my pain meds kick in.”

“Have a problem with that?”

“So Zuko might need a little more time. His wife too. They’re very serious people. Zuko will have a million questions about your loyalties, forgetting he used to be a bad guy too, much worse than you ever were.”

“Hey, I’m offended! I was a pretty bad guy.”

“Yeah, the babysitting cook. I’m trembling…” She lifted her healthy hand in the air as a joke, but her palm really was shaking. Guess, she lost more blood than they thought.

“Toph, if you’re-”

“Shut up! I’m fine.” She paused. “Suki’s not gonna like you either.”

“Wouldn’t blame her… Who’s still left?”

“The kids probably will. And Sokka will be your best friend, you mark my words.”

“I disagree, but okay…”

“Why? He’s immature like you, he’s funny, a fucking genius when it comes to plans and let’s not forget you make food and there is nothing he likes more than food. He tries one bite of your roast duck and he might try to steal you from me, Hotshot. Besides, he and I get along great.”

“See, that. That’s exactly why we won’t really get along. You two had a thing, didn’t you?”

“What?” It was a ridiculous idea. So she thought Sokka was smart and funny? So what? You were supposed to like your friends, weren’t you? And he was her best friend. Best friend since forever… Then why did she almost stop talking to him completely after she and Kanto got serious?

“I’m not jealous or anything like that. I’m just curious, since I’m beginning to think you have a type.”

“I don’t want to fuck Sokka. Never did.”

“Fine, fine…” He took her hand. “Guess, I’m not objective. I’m in so deep I can’t imagine someone not being into you.”

“Oh, please…” She brushed off his words, but she smiled. Damn him. “He’s with Suki. The two of them go way back. From before I ever met him. I… I might have had the tiniest crush on him, but that was when we were kids. It’s embarrassing.”

“Nah, it happens.”

“You’re not jealous? I have to admit if it was the other way around, I would be.”

“Jealous why? Because he has absolutely no taste in women?”

Like always, in just a few minutes he not only made her forget about her wound, but about everything else that bothered her. So much so that she almost forgot to ask him.

“There were less people to arrest than in our plan. What happened?”

“Oh, right… I guess, I should’ve run in by you. I needed those guys for next week, so I reassigned them to save them from being arrested.”

“You can’t use other people?” She sat up then and hoped he didn’t think anything of her putting one of her feet down on the floor so she could listen.

“I can.” He sat up too. “But those guys are really loyal to me.”

She nodded. He was telling the truth.

“Expecting a lie?” he asked.

Fuck.

“I…”

“It really makes a difference to work with people I can trust. Money only gets you so far.”

“I hear you, but… Won’t it be suspicious if only your friends keep avoiding arrest?”

“I throw one of them under the bus too sometimes, don’t sweat.”

**oooooooooo**

**_Week 81_ **

“Do you know what it is or not, Katara?! I don’t have all day, you know…” Toph sat on the bed in Kya’s room on Air Temple Island, yet she acted like it was a doctor’s office.

“Wouldn’t you rather talk to your doctor about this?” Her friend was just putting away the little girl’s toys.

“I did! I got laughed at.” Toph picked up one of Kya’s dolls too, but she played with it, instead of helping reduce the mess. “As soon as I mentioned my heart they were like: _Do you exercise regularly?_ ” She made her voice squeaky and moved the doll pretending she was having a conversation with it. “ _Do you smoke?_ No. _Are you on drugs?_ No. _Do you have any family history of heart disease?_ I don’t think so. And then they ignored me…” She tossed the doll away. “Told me it was stress and sent me home.”

“While I am flattered, I’m your _second_ choice.” Katara picked up the doll and put it away. “I know nothing about heart conditions and have my hands pretty full here. Thank you very much for asking about Tenzin, by the way.”

“It’s really annoying me, Katara. You know I wouldn’t get in the same house as a screaming baby if it wasn’t serious. At least listen to it.”

“Lie down.” Katara ordered, then took Toph’s hand and felt her pulse.

“It feels like-”

“Shh.” Katara closed her eyes and listened. “It seems perfectly normal to me.”

“No, listen again. There’s like a backdrop. I feel my heartbeat as always, but there’s like this interference from somewhere. Like… I don’t know how to explain it.”

“Like an arrythmia of some kind?”

“I don’t know what that means, I just know my heartbeat is off and it’s driving me mad.” Toph sat up and Katara took the place next to her.

“What does it sound like?”

“My usual heartbeat is like: Boom. Boom. Boom. But now there’s that, but there’s also this interference like boom-boom-boom-boom-boom-boom… All the time.”

“Do you have any other symptoms? Because _my heart is wrong_ is not a lot to go on.”

“Symptoms? Like what? I dunno… I’m a bit more tired than usual, that can be a heart thing, right?”

“Don’t think about what should be a symptom, just tell me if there’s anything weird going on.”

Toph took a deep breath. She thought there was a slight raise in Katara’s heartbeat, but she wasn’t sure about anything anymore. The woman was way more upset about this than Toph was. She wasn’t afraid of being sick, not really, she was blind, and she worked around it, she could do that with anything. It was the possibility that her bending was picking things up wrong that bothered her so much she visited two doctors and Katara in one day.

“I think I might also have a stomach bug. I threw up a bunch of times.”

“And you didn’t think that’s a symptom?” Katara put her palm on Toph’s forehead to check for a temperature. “You know, whatever it is, I bet it’s because you refuse to take care of yourself. You need regular meals and rest and to stay home when you’re sick.”

“It’s not a big deal. I just throw up when I wake up and then I’m fine. No big whoop.”

Katara shook her head. “Well, you’re not warm.”

“And I am taking care of myself. I’m staying away from the station as much as I can, the smell of police officers who haven’t showered in days makes me wanna hurl even more than usual.”

“Wait, Toph, do you have a weird taste in your mouth? Like metal maybe?”

“Yeah, like I’ve been sucking on a pole in my spare time. Do you know what this is? You’re awesome.”

“How long’s it been since your last period?”

“I don’t know, Katara, what does that have to do with my heart? Some time ago.”

“So it’s late.”

“It’s not late, I can feel it coming. I’ve been hormonal and- Oh, no.”

Katara scooched closer. “Is it possible? That you’re pregnant? You know… Biologically?”

“You mean, has someone fucked me recently?”

“You don’t have to be so crude, but… Has someone?”

“It’s possible. Very possible now that I think back…” She sighed and Katara moved away and gestured for her to lie down again. For some reason Toph thought this examination would have to be of a way more personal nature, but apparently all her friend needed was a few seconds with water on her stomach to be sure.

“So what’s the verdict? Knocked-up or not?”

“You’re definitely with child. I’d say since about two months ago. Probably a little shorter.”

Toph was suddenly glad a doctor didn’t figure this out since she didn’t want to completely fall apart in a strange clinic somewhere.

“And I’ve been hearing its heartbeat? Is that even possible? Is it supposed to be that fast and weak?” Toph sat up and listened carefully on the floor, trying to distinguish the baby’s sounds from her own.

“I honestly don’t know. You’re kind of a special case, Toph. Didn’t you hear Tenzin?”

“Yeah, but only when he was much closer to coming out. This is a bit…”

“Overwhelming? I can imagine.” Katara kneeled down in front of her friend. “Do you have any idea who the father is?”

“No, Katara, I’m blind, how could I know who I was fucking?” Toph said as sarcastically as she could. “Of course, I know! What do you think I do? Just show up at a bar, whistle and shout _Anyone want a ride, I’ll be in the back alley_?!”

“No, no… I just wanted to let you know that everything is okay, even if you’re not married or-”

“I don’t need this!” Toph got up violently and headed for the door. “If I wanted to hear this shit, I’d just go to my actual mother.”

“No, Toph, wait! I’m sorry.” She caught up to her in the hall and barred her way. “Let me start over… Congratulations.”

“Thank you.” Toph was still mad. “And for your information, not only do I know who this kid’s dad is, we’re in a committed relationship. He loves me and he’ll be thrilled when I tell him about this.”

“That’s wonderful.”

“It is. It’s a fucking fairytale…” Hearing herself explain it to Katara gave Toph a new perspective. It was a fucking fairytale. It was all coming together finally. They were taking down the triad in two weeks. Just two weeks and everything would change forever.

“You’re having a baby, Toph!” Katara lounged forward and hugged her. “It’s going to be so great, you’ll see. And they’ll be Tenzin’s age. They’ll play together and-”

“Slow down there…”

Katara let go. “When do we get to meet this mystery man?”

“Soon.” Toph blurted against herself. She was happy. Insanely so. Like she was high on something… “He’s moving in with me in a few weeks actually. This lined up perfectly.”

“Great. Come, I’ll make us some tea and you’ll tell me everything about him. For example, how did you two meet?” Katara started walking away.

“I’d rather not. You’ll find out everything in a few weeks. I promise it’s worth it.” Toph smiled. She really wanted to tell someone everything. It was such an amazing story and even though it made her look unprofessional and naïve and a bit easy, she was sure Katara would appreciate it. She even suspected Katara would find it romantic. Toph was sick and tired of not talking about Kanto, because he really was something to talk about.

“Can’t you just tell me one little thing? Like where he’s from or what his name is?”

“Kanto. His name is Kanto.”

**oooooooooo**

**_Week 82_ **

“Toph, come look at this.” Kanto stood over some papers at the table.

“Really? After more than a year, we need to go over this again? I cannot _look_ at anything,” she mocked.

“Just… Come go over the plan once more with me.”

“Give it a rest already, Hotshot.” She came up to him and hugged his waist from the back. “We went over it a thousand times, together and apart. What more do you want?”

“I’m just…” He turned to put his arms around her too.

She listened to how his heart pounded. “Nervous?”

“No.”

_Lie_.

“I just want this to go well,” He finished.

He had no idea how much she _needed_ this to go well. Now that she knew she was pregnant, she could in fact distinguish the baby’s heartbeat from her own. That, or it was getting stronger. Either way, listening to it was her new favorite thing to do. Not only that, but Toph thought it helped her with decisions. For example, when earlier today she had to decide whether to tell Kanto about their baby before or after the final mission she was conflicted. Yet it only took a minute of not thinking, just listening to the baby’s little heart, to know what she had to do.

She didn’t tell him. He’d be thrilled, yes, but Toph knew him and if he found out now, he wouldn’t go through with the mission. It put him in danger, and he couldn’t risk his child growing up without a father. But Toph also knew it would always bother him if he didn’t finish this. If he didn’t get justice for Ling. She didn’t want him growing to resent himself or her, or their baby. He needed this, so did the city and everything else could wait for one fucking week.

“The only thing you need to remember is that when it all starts,” she begun. “You get out of there. I know you’re a good guy, but none of my cops do yet.”

She couldn’t afford to tell them, still. They’d caught Fei, but he was neither the only nor the best mole the Terra Triad had.

“I can handle them.”

“But if one of them catches you, you raise your hands and surrender. You got that?” Toph pulled his chin down so she could kiss him. “You put ‘em up and you _surrender_ , Kanto. My boys don’t fuck around.”

“You don’t have to remind me…”

“And then when you’re at the station, I’ll get you out and we’ll go home.”

“I should go.” He pulled away. “See you in a week.”

She really wanted to tell him. Wanted to scream at the top of her lungs _It’s a good thing we have an extra room in our new apartment, because we’re going to need it_. But she remembered he needed to stay focused for another week. And the news she had would sound so much better while they’re standing in their new home.

“Good luck. Don’t forget to meet me here two hours after the whole thing if you manage to get away.”

“Yeah, yeah…” He stopped at the door, then turned around. “Toph, before I go…”

“Yeah?”

“I want you to know… I don’t love you.”

_What? Why would he even…?_

Then she felt it. His heartbeat told her it was a complete lie.

“You heard me,” he continued. “I do not love you and you’re nowhere close to the best thing that ever happened to me.”

_Lie. Lie._

Spirits, that man…

She ran and threw herself at him then, locking their lips one more time before he had to leave.

“And that’s all you’re gonna get till next week.” He whispered as they were still kissing, inching closer to the door as slowly as they could. She wanted to say it back. Not the negative, the real thing, yet she knew if she let that out, the truth about the baby would come with it for sure.

“Kanto… Don’t be late.”

“I wouldn’t dare.”

And with that he was out the door.

**oooooooooo**

**_Week 83_ **

Exactly a week later, there was a fire at the unofficial Terra Triad headquarters. This provided a good distraction for Kanto, the newest member of the triad’s fifth ring, to bring in two officers undercover as triad members. They, of course, didn’t know the man leading them was on their side. And that was only step one…

Toph listened to steps one through nine unfold from two streets away, while comfortably sitting in a safe house. Her people need her to coordinate that day, not crack heads. Sadly, she couldn’t be in communication with Kanto, so when the operation turned out to be a resounding success, she had no idea where he was and in what state. While everyone celebrated, she scanned the arrested criminals for him. They’d caught every last member of the triad’s fifth ring except, apparently, the father of her child. When she asked about triad casualties, they told her there was only one, and that it was a woman. Kanto was alive and he got away. That was perfect.

Toph went to meet him at the apartment later, as they’d agreed. Everything had gone according to plan. After all that time, after everything… The head of the Terra Triad was arrested and stripped of his bending. There was no one left to take control. They’d won.

All Toph could think about was the success, at least before she noticed Kanto was late. She waited on. He was probably just being careful. It was smart. But now that she wasn’t up in her own head, but paying attention she noticed something else about the apartment.

The broom. It was leaned against the wall in the position that signaled Kanto wasn’t going to make the next meeting. He’d used the signal a couple of times over their time together, he wouldn’t have used it by mistake.

Where was he?

That’s when Toph became afraid. Not of something in particular, because she had no idea what could’ve caused him to come in here earlier today and move the broom, then leave. It was just a seemingly endless fear without any aim that washed over her in an instant.

She needed him to walk through that door right that second and tell her it was a mistake and that everything would go according to plan from then. She waited for him into the night, even slept over there, but he didn’t show.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Was the Kanto background information necessary? No. But the info dump about the OC has become a staple of my writing at this point XD I realized there is a scene like that one in every one of my stories…
> 
> Anyway, yeah, Lin enters the picture (yay)
> 
> I originally planned on describing their plan for taking down the Terra Triad, but surprise, surprise the vague memories of those few crime shows I watched in my early teens didn’t turn me into a scheming mastermind. So instead you got that vague mess up there…
> 
> New chapter in a few days :)


	8. That Jerk

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Quick clarification, I didn’t really think through the whole thing with using “Week XY” to measure time, and for practical reasons I’ll have to switch to using Lin’s age to tell time in the last two chapters. (I have no desire to find out how many weeks are in 18 years)
> 
> So the first part, “7 months before Lin’s born”, is two days after the end of last chapter.
> 
> Okay, that’s it, carry on.

**_7 months before Lin’s born_ **

Like every week, Toph and Kanto had a second appointment selected. They picked it out of habit, they always had an extra one just in case, but Toph never actually thought she’d have to use this one. It was two days after they were supposed to meet in their apartment, almost 50 hours, when Kanto actually started making his way up the stairs. When he opened the door, he found Toph sitting at the table. Waiting.

“I didn’t think you’d come,” he dared say after standing her up, after everything. But she wouldn’t let him get away without having this talk. He owed her at least that much. The truth, finally.

She stood up then, still in her armor, and she planned on staying in it.

“I guess you’ve heard everything by now.”

“But I wanna hear it from you… How’s your triad, Hotshot?”

“Recovering.”

They’d only exchanged a couple of sentences by that point and she already wanted to kick him until all his teeth were on the floor. How did she think she could listen to him for long enough to get some answers? She probably couldn’t. Not after hearing what she did from her officers.

After Kanto was a no-show last time, she had her people pay special attention to what was left of the Terra Triad, worrying they had somehow found him out, then imprisoned him, or worse… Yet the actual truth was somehow even harder for her to process. In just a few hours her officers returned with the news that the Terra Triad was rebuilding with Kanto as their new leader.

“How? How’d you do it? How’d you lie to me?” It would’ve been expected of her to ask _why_ , yet she didn’t give a fuck about his dumb reasoning and pathetic excuses. She just needed to know one thing for her own sanity. “Was it all lies? Did you plan it from the start?”

“No, Toph. Nothing like that, I-”

“So you’re not a fucking psychopath who can lie as easily as breathe? You weren’t selling me some bullshit here for an hour and then running off to laugh at the desperate bitch with your friends? Is… Did Ling ever really exist? Or was it just a sob story for sympathy points?”

“Stop!” He was the first one to take a step closer. “It was all true. I didn’t fake a second of it… I couldn’t even if I tried.”

Her truthseeing really felt broken, because even at all that, it didn’t signal a lie.

“Then if it wasn’t all a con, how come I didn’t feel you lie when you said you were going to meet me, huh?”

“Because I hadn’t yet decided then. When I talked to you last, I really believed I’d come, Toph. I wanted to.”

“Then why the fuck didn’t you?!” She felt tears prickling her eyes. “I waited here for…” She let the sentence die in her throat. “Everything worked perfectly… Your plan.” She chuckled bitterly. “How stupid of me not to see it left you as the only fifth ring member in the triad. The only one capable of seizing the power for himself.”

“I wanted to leave everything behind for you. A part of me still does, but there’s work to be done here, in the Shades. We’re not done. We got the Boss, sure, but what about others like him? This place chews people up and spits them out, and that cannot be broken from the outside like you want to believe. No… That can only stop with help from the inside. Inside, at the top.”

“So that’s what I was? A way to get to the top? Fast and easy…” She sighed. “Don’t you even remember why you started this? To get a _better_ life. That’s what you told me you wanted on the first day. Not to fix the whole fucking city for everyone, just to do better.”

“I said _a better life for me and my little brother_. That’s no longer possible. None of this ever crossed my mind before Ling.”

“Ling would want you to-”

“Don’t fucking talk about him!” Kanto took two more steps towards her. “You didn’t even know him!”

“You’re right. I didn’t.” The tears broke free then. “And I didn’t know his brother either…”

“Everything I feel for you is true, I swear it on Ling’s grave, but this cause is more important. That my people, the people who have to grow up in this shithole, don’t have to go through the same shit as me. I thought you of all people would want that to happen.”

“I do, but you’re not gonna make it happen. You think you’re the first asshole thinking he’s the only one doing crime for good reasons?” He’d fail, she knew it. She didn’t bother explaining it, but she knew it was pointless. Just like you can’t clean something with a dirty cloth, you can’t end crime with more crime. If there was only one thing she’d learned from Aang, it’d be that. Kanto would get that too, but by that time it’d be too late.

“I have to try, Toph! You’ve had… How many years to fix it yourself? Fifteen? Things are no better now, than when I came to this city… You try and you work yourself to death, but have you ever asked yourself if you were going by it the wrong way?”

“And what if I arrest you right now? What then, Hotshot?” Toph flexed her hand and prepared her cables to seize him. He’d confessed to doing illegal things right here countless times. “It was a mistake coming back.”

“You can’t arrest me.” It was almost a gloat. “You turned in that contract we had, didn’t you? Before you came to meet me on Tuesday…”

She’d done exactly that. And that meant… She couldn’t arrest him for anything done before two days ago. She could take him in for questioning, but that’d yield nothing. He’d thought about everything it seemed.

She probably looked even more hurt now, since he decided to try and come even closer. Toph was ready to let him, it was an instinct now, but then she sobered and swung her hand, pushing the earth under his feet, shoving him all the way to the opposite wall.

He didn’t have any metal on him. Smart… She wasn’t sure what she’d do if she could throw him around as easily as that. Using earth was already too easy, especially since he wasn’t fighting back. After his body hit the wall it was quiet for a while and she remembered. The third heartbeat in the room… Everything she was doing, she was doing to the father of her child.

“Toph, we can still work together, like we used to-”

“Shut up!” Tears raced down her cheeks then as she slowly approached him. “You ruined everything!” If she allowed herself to bend at him again, she’d kill him.

_Why not?_

It came from somewhere deep in her mind. Toph had survived some devastatingly hard things in her life, but never, never had she been hurt like this.

_Because it’s Kanto._

“I know I did you wrong, but I’m not sorry. I made my decision and I-” She interrupted him with a punch to the face then. Those wouldn’t kill him, at least not for now. He wasn’t detained in any way, yet after the punch, he remained at the same exact place on the wall.

“I’d never ask you to stop being a cop for me. Never.”

“A cop is what I am, deep inside. The man I worked with in this apartment worked for a triad, but he wasn’t a criminal, he snitched, but he wasn’t a traitor, he did murder people, but he wasn’t a murderer… He was a cook.”

“I’m still me. I still love you…”

She punched him again.

“Say that again.”

“Toph, I love you!”

She punched him as hard as she could now. Her hand hurt, but seeing how fast he bounced back, she hit him again.

“Hit back, asshole! Do it!” She screamed at him as he spit blood onto the floor. “We’re enemies now, that’s what enemies do!”

“I don’t want to hurt you.”

“You’ve already hurt me! You’ve hurt me more than I ever thought possible! Why couldn’t you just have let me be?! Why?! We could’ve just worked together, but you had to go and cook for me and kiss me and make me fall in love with you before ruining my life!” She had him by the collar of his shirt now, and she was shoving him into the wall repeatedly, the apartment shaking periodically when she was especially angry.

“Before Ling I still thought I could-”

“Ling would’ve died either way.” She didn’t believe that. Not really. She just wanted him as angry as she was at that moment.

Now he punched back. It was weak and obviously just so she’d get what she wanted, and stop talking, but it hurt in a different way. She retaliated and in just a few seconds they were both on the floor in a jumbled mess, throwing half-hearted punches and kicks at each other. In some weird, twisted way she didn’t want him to stop hitting her, because then this, the two of them so close, her lying on top of him would never happen again. Then it’d really be over.

He got away from her eventually, stood up and started backing away. He’d had enough. She had the advantage of her armor, she had no real idea how hurt he was.

“I hope we see each other again, soon, even as enemies,” he said.

Toph got up then, dusted herself off and planned to turn around and leave. Instead she raised her hands to their bending positions. The apartment shook slightly, pictures tilted, mugs moved on the table. His heartbeat spiked. Then the windows shook too, and it was increasingly hard to stand. She didn’t want to kill him, she knew that now at least, but she had to do something, or she’d explode. So she screamed.

She was sure for the next few seconds her bending could be felt throughout half the city. Here in the apartment, Kanto fell down just as the power went out, so he probably couldn’t see the walls crack open, but he definitely heard the windows shatter.

“Toph!”

It brought her back. It and the honks and sounds of crashing from outside. What had she done?!

She ran out of that apartment then, leaving Kanto before all the people started coming out of their homes afraid of the earthquake. It would take them a few hours to figure out it was a person that caused it. It would take them a few hours more to call her to investigate it.

**oooooooooo**

An hour later on Air Temple Island, Toph had to wait for Katara to be alone. She waited in front of the house, sensing everyone inside and hoping Katara would let her kids sleep finally so she could talk to her. Eventually, only when all three kids were asleep in their beds, did Katara go to kitchen alone. Toph knocked on the back door.

“It’s me!” She could unlock the door easily, but she stood and waited for Katara to let her in. She had no idea why.

“What in the world happened?!”

She probably looked like shit after everything, but it couldn’t possibly look as bad as it felt.

“Get the baby out of me, Katara!” Toph stepped in, slamming the door behind herself. “Get that man’s baby out of me!”

“Wait, Toph, what happened?” The woman stopped her, then cupped her face, probably to examine the injuries. Just that little bit of affection was enough for Toph to start crying again.

“Did he do that to you?” Katara asked, touching her friend’s swollen lip.

“It’s not like that. I hit first.”

“Why?” she used her mom tone.

“I don’t wanna talk about that. Can you do it or not then? Get the baby out?” Fuck, she had to stop crying. “Because if you can’t, I gotta go find a doctor that can.”

“I can. I won’t.”

“Then we have nothing to talk about.” Toph twitched towards the door, so much anger there and all of it misplaced. Katara was already holding her shoulders and trying to keep her there.

“I won’t do it tonight. You’re tired, you’re in pain, you’re not thinking straight. We’ll talk about it in the morning. You can stay here.”

“Cause you know what’s best for me, like always?! You know, I’m sick and tired of you being so high and mighty and… And…” It just continued into sobs from there. Toph didn’t even remember deciding on it before putting her arms around her friend and crying into her shoulder. Of course, Katara didn’t mind, the woman embraced her and stroked her hair as Toph cried her eyes out.

“It’ll be alright. You’re home now.”

Toph was never more grateful for Katara than in that moment, and if the sobbing permitted her, she would’ve told Katara everything just then.

Aang wasn’t home, so Katara took Toph to her bedroom. After a short bit of healing on her face, Toph finally laid down to sleep. It came to her sooner than she thought possible given the circumstances. It helped that Katara was just there if she needed her.

**oooooooooo**

In the morning, Toph woke when the bed shifted.

“Sorry, didn’t mean to disturb you.” Katara apologized. It wasn’t her fault, Toph just wasn’t used to sharing a bedroom with someone. “How are you feeling?”

“Like I almost killed someone last night.”

“He didn’t take the news well?” Katara sat back onto the bed and scooched to sit near Toph.

“I didn’t even have time to tell him.” A pause there. “He dumped me. Even worse, he betrayed me. And then he left…”

“Maybe if he knew he’d want to stay.”

“I don’t want someone to stay with me out of pity or a sense of duty or whatever… Fuck him, I don’t need him.” Toph sat up too, turning her back to Katara.

“Do you still… Do you still want me to end the pregnancy?” It was such a heavy question, and Katara dropped it on Toph’s chest first thing in the morning, just like that.

She didn’t answer for a good long while, then she felt her friend’s hand on her shoulder.

“I don’t. I’m keeping it. It’s not his anymore, it’s mine.”

Katara was just about to add something, when a baby started crying in the other room.

“That’s Tenzin, I have to get him, he’s probably hungry.” Katara got to her feet. “You know we’ll all do everything we can to help you?”

Toph nodded and Katara disappeared from the room. The next form at the door frame was a child’s. A small, giggling rascal who stared up at the bruised police chief sitting on his parents’ bed.

“Good morning, Aunt Toph.” Bumi skipped to stand near her.

“Mornin’.”

“You get into a fight?” He crawled onto the bed next to her.

“Yeah…”

“Does it hurt?”

“Not really.” _Yes, so much_. “You should see the other guy…” Toph made an effort to pull her mouth into a smile then. “Your brother wake you?”

“Yup. He’s really noisy.”

“Sounds like a nightmare…”

“Nah, he’s really cute. Whenever I give him my hand he grabs hold of my finger with his little fist as hard as he can. Mom says that means he likes me and wants me to stay with him.”

Knowing Bumi, he probably continued talking after that, but Toph didn’t hear a word of it. She was too focused on a particular weak heartbeat. No, she couldn’t say goodbye to it. Not now, not anytime soon.

**oooooooooo**

**_3 months before Lin’s born_ **

“Here it is, Mom. Home sweet home.” Toph unlocked the front door to her apartment quite unceremoniously with a simple flick of her wrist.

Yes, it was the one she bought for herself and Kanto and Ling to live in.

No, she didn’t think it was a good idea, but for fuck’s sake if she couldn’t have her boyfriend, she’d at least have the fucking apartment.

“Oh, well, it’s not what I expected, but it’s… Snug. Very intimate.” Poppy Beifong followed behind, still holding her dress up with both hands from the stairwell.

“Quick tour. Bathroom.” Toph pointed. “My room. Baby’s room. Everything else you can probably see…”

She expected her mother to stroll around, but she turned to the wall. What could be so interesting…? Oh, right. It was almost nighttime. The light from the hallway probably wasn’t enough.

Eventually, Poppy found the light switch and flipped it before closing the door. Then she set off to explore the apartment.

“You don’t have a lot of time to get to the furnishing of the child’s room, you know, dear?”

“What are you talking about? I’ve furnished it.” Toph followed her mother into the small room.

“Then you’ve been robbed. There’s only a crib in here.”

“Yeah, what else do you want? I have somewhere to put the baby once it’s out.”

“How about a changing table? Or toys?”

Toph stepped to the crib and pulled out a stuffed badgermole. “I’m glad we got that settled.”

“Let’s forget about that for a second, why does the crib have bitemarks on it?”

“Probably from Kya, she seems like a biter. Could be Bumi too, for all I know…”

“I’m sorry, dear, I’m not following. Where did you buy it?”

“I didn’t buy it, Mom. I borrowed it from Katara. They have one extra now that Kya’s sleeping in a big girl bed.” It was impressive how much Toph knew about life on Air Temple Island now. She spent a lot of time there after all, and for the first time ever she actually paid attention to what was going on with the kids. She’d need the experience…

“Toph, we’re rich. You can buy your child whatever they need. I can go with you to help with the colors and-”

“Look, I decide for my kid and this is just fine for now.”

“Let’s move on from that for now then... I really think you need a bigger apartment. A house would be best. Your father was right, you don’t know how much space a child needs.”

“It’s still weird that you two are together.” Toph left the room and sat down on the sofa in the living room. Her feet were killing her, yet she’d sooner die than admit her elderly mother could currently handle more standing around than her. She put her feet up on the end table, and only half the reason was to annoy her mother.

“I don’t think it is.” Poppy followed, then sat in the armchair opposite her daughter. Even away from everyone but a blind woman, she fixed her dress and hair upon sitting down, then struck her noblewoman pose, back straight, chin level, legs crossed.

Kanto would laugh at this, Toph thought, then stopped herself.

“Toph, are you listening to me?” Poppy raised her voice slightly, while still remaining perfectly calm and poised.

“Sorry, I thought I felt a kick.” Toph immediately regretted the lie, since her mother fluttered to her side on the sofa and placed a single ringed hand on her belly. There was nothing to feel, but Poppy wasn’t giving up that easily.

“What I was saying is… Your father and I had issues, but we worked at them and we found a way to like each other again. It’s not impossible, it just takes a little bit of work and patience.”

“Well, I don’t need my earthbending to sense that’s directed at me.” Toph removed her mother’s hand.

“I simply don’t want you to shut that door for yourself or my grandchild. If you’d just tell me who the father is, I’m sure we could come to an agreement with him…”

“No, Mom, look… No one wants him to be involved, trust me.”

“Listen, your father and I talked, and we agreed we’d support you no matter what.” Poppy took her hand then. “Even if he’s Fire Nation.”

“Spirits, Mom! Stop talking…” She escaped to the armchair, then sensed her mother’s heartbeat spike. “You can relax, he’s not Fire Nation.”

“Oh, thank goodness…” The woman exhaled. “Your father would not take that well.”

If only they knew what Kanto did for a living… Toph felt a sudden urge to tell them.

“It’s good luck then, that I don’t care.”

“Is he one of ours?” Poppy asked.

“Yes, he’s one of _ours_.” If she told them, his nationality would never again be a topic of conversation. They’d be remembering with fondness the days they spent thinking she was shacking up with a Fire Nation man.

“That’s wonderful! Then why won’t you just let me talk to him? I’m sure we could come to some kind of arrangement where he’d accept his duty to you and the child.”

Toph couldn’t believe her ears. “Mom, you’re not bribing or tricking anyone into marrying me! We’ve been over this... I’m doing this – on my own, because I want to do this – on my own.”

“How can you say that? Think about the child, please, dear.”

“The kid’s gonna be just fine with me.”

“Not if you insist on trapping them in this little apartment.”

“For the last time, it’s big enough.” Toph wasn’t a big fan of a lot of things about the apartment at first, but now after this it was a matter of principle. They could take her out of it when she was dead…

“Toph, dear, you’re wrong. Where will the babysitter sleep? Having the maid sleep on the couch is one thing but making them both do it is a bit inhumane. Don’t you think?”

“Have we just met? There will be no babysitter and there is no maid…”

Her mother took a deep breath then, and Toph knew the woman only did that when she was trying with all she had not to yell. Poppy never yelled, though. When she was little, Toph thought it was just because she was a woman, and _everyone knew_ it wasn’t proper for women to make a lot of noise or have opinions or draw attention to themselves, but as she got older Toph realized that wasn’t quite it. It was more like a spiritual thing, kind of like Aang, Poppy refused to let herself succumb to anger.

“Let me see if I’m understanding you right… You will work as a Police Chief, and take care of a newborn, and clean all by yourself?”

“Yes?” That sounded a bit impossible when she put it like that. Why did she have to make sense? Oh, this was a lot…

“No one can do all that, dear. Listen to your mother. Buy a house, hire people, you’ll be thankful once the little one is here.”

“Katara can keep an eye on it while I’m at work, with her three I doubt she’d even notice another one. I’m not having strangers living here, raising my child.” This would be such an easier conversation if Kanto was here, she thought briefly, then reprimanded herself.

“You can’t take advantage of your friend like that… It’s a two-person job after all. That’s why I’ve-”

“I don’t want to hear anything more about convincing the father!”

“That’s why I’ve decided to come live with you to help with the baby.”

Silence.

“No.”

“Why not, dear? You clearly need the help…”

Unbelievable… The woman was unbelievable.

“I’ll play along… Where would you sleep, Mom?”

“In the bed with you, of course. It’s not as if that place will be taken anytime soon…”

“Mom!”

“Only making a joke to show you what a fun time we’ll have together until the child starts school.”

“School?!” Toph stood up, moving yet a few steps further from her mother. “It you’re trying to scare me it’s only kind of working…”

“Dear, be reasonable.” The woman patted the seat next to her on the sofa. “Come sit.”

“How would you know how to take care of a baby anyway?” Toph argued, but listened and sat down.

“What a silly question… I raised you, didn’t I?” Poppy gently moved the hair from Toph’s face one strand at a time. “For as long as you let me anyway…”

“I had a babysitter, I remember.”

“Just because I didn’t get up for _every_ night feeding doesn’t mean I didn’t spend every day by your side. You were my whole world then, I didn’t have a job or many real friends. Trust me, I know what I’m doing.”

This was it. This was finally too much. The idea of her mother sitting by herself alone day after day when Toph ran away. She was about to start crying, it was so fucking easy to get her there now with this baby in her… She had to get away.

“No!” Toph got to her feet. “You’re not moving in, Mom! Actually,” She grabbed her coat. “I don’t even want to see you here when I get back!”

“Toph, dear-”

“I said _no_! Now, get out!”

Toph stormed out then and went… Well, she went to the other apartment. Their _real_ apartment. The place where her and Kanto fell in love. Also the place where they kicked the shit out of each other instead of saying goodbye.

She barely made it off the stairwell before sensing the apartment was occupied. At least five people, she wasn’t sure, they were moving a lot. It made sense he’d sell it, but somehow, she’d hoped that he’d be there.

_Why?_

But that’s not how anything worked… She was at least aware of her silliness. That had to count for something.

Before she could leave the way she came, the door to the apartment opened and two giggling and screeching kids ran past her to the stairs. She wasn’t wearing her armor, she could pass for a random pregnant girl just passing by if not for the eyes. She always forgot about the damn eyes. That was the reward for being the most famous blind person in the city.

_More like the most famous blind person in the world_ …

“Chief Beifong?” a woman from inside asked.

_Yeah, they had her._

“Evening.”

“Is there a problem, Chief?” a man, probably the rascals’ father was the next to speak. “We’re sorry if we were loud. The kids, you know…”

“Zhi, bring your sister back here right now!” the woman called.

“No, no…” Toph waved her hands. “It’s not official business, I’m just… I…” She wondered in that moment if they could see she’d been crying. She hoped not. “I used to know someone that lived here.”

There was a little bit of silence after that and, honestly, Toph couldn’t blame them for not having an answer to that.

“Would you like to come in for dinner?” the woman offered.

“I’d love to, but…” Toph could smell the food from inside and while it wasn’t going to be like Kanto’s, nothing ever would, she was pretty hungry. In the end, the baby made the decision for her.

“But?”

“Nothing. I’d love to.”

After dinner they insisted on serving her some tea too, since it was unseasonably cold outside, so she sat down on the sofa and waited. It was still the same one. The same one her baby was probably conceived on…

“Thank you.”

The husband and wife were off putting their kids to bed, so the one serving her tea was the grandfather. She was already drinking hers, but he didn’t seem to be picking up his cup. What’s more, his body was positioned in such a way that it was probable he was staring at her. She couldn’t know, of course.

“You know, I bought this apartment.” The man finally spoke. It seemed random and unrelated until he continued. “And when I was buying it, the landlord said that the man who owned this apartment before told him he had a message for you, if you ever showed up here. Do you want to hear it?”

“No.”

“Are you sure? He seemed to have gone through a lot of trouble to get it to you in a time of need.”

“Why not then… Give it to me.”

“He said… _I miss you too, Toph. You know where to find me, but you also know what kind of man you’d find._ That’s it. He didn’t leave a name or-”

“It’s alright. I know who it’s from.”

It was rather silly of her to expect his message to something terribly romantic. Much like Kanto, it was practical. It told her that she’d never be truly alone, that he’d always be an option. That all she needed to do to have all of it back was walk into the Terra Triad headquarters. It also said that the man she’d find there would be the man she left once already. No more, no less.

**oooooooooo**

Toph slept over on Air Temple Island. She said she felt weird and wanted a checkup, but she sensed Katara knew what she needed. Company and to be away from everything for a night. Then bright and early in the morning, actually that was the plan, but it ended up being around noon, she made her way back to her apartment. She was surprised to find her mother still there. Or there again?

She knew the woman was there, perfectly poised on the sofa even before she stepped inside. Once Poppy spotted her, Toph thought they’d just continue their fight, but what she got from her mother instead was stone cold silence.

“Let me show you something, dear.” Poppy led her by her hand, something she used to do a lot while Toph was still hiding how good at earthbending she was. As they got closer to the baby’s room, Toph could sense the room was a lot fuller than before.

“I hope you don’t mind, I went shopping while you were away.”

Toph could sense the crib, it was a different one, definitely. Of course, it was… There were shelves now, probably filled with all kinds of toys to spoil the kid, Toph couldn’t be sure. What she could undoubtedly feel was a big metal thing hanging from the ceiling. A baby mobile, she thought Katara called those things. Something to occupy the baby as it slept. If her kid doesn’t come out blind like her…

“I know you can’t- But it’s beautiful. Since we still don’t know if it’ll be a boy or a girl I went with green, except for the curtains, they’re-”

“When did you have time? I’m pretty sure those stores are closed at night.”

“I’m a Beifong, they stayed open and then delivered first thing in the morning. I really made good time… Now you’re all set, you have rattles, all kinds of stuffed toys, blankets… And I know what you’re going to say, but you have to keep it because it’s my gift for the baby.”

“Thanks, Mom.” Toph felt like shit. “And about that whole _get out_ thing…”

“Already forgotten about.” Poppy put her arms around Toph very carefully, like she was sure her daughter would flee at any moment.

“And running away last night was a dick move…”

“Language, please.” Poppy let go, then used the proximity to start moving Toph’s hair off her face. “It’s not the first time, I’m used to it.”

“Cut it out with the hair, Mom.”

“I can’t help it, dear. You have such a beautiful face, everyone should see it.”

How come no one ever told her being pregnant meant every other thing would be making her cry. This was giving her a whole new appreciation for Katara’s resolve.

“You’re still not moving in here.” She tried a warm smile to lessen the blow of that sentence, but her mother seemed like she already knew.

“I know you think I don’t listen when you talk about why you left, but I do. I did. So if you want me to, I’ll go home to your father right now. Or I could stay till the baby comes, or whatever you need.”

She was gonna make Toph say she wanted her to leave the city, wasn’t she?

“I want you to do what you want, just not here in my apartment.” Well, not even Toph could be that much of an asshole to her mom as to tell her to leave town.

“You know what I want… If it were up to only me, I’d stay here and dote on you and the baby every hour of every day.”

“Wouldn’t you get bored?”

“Never.” The woman paused then, thoughtfully. “But I know that’s not what you want, so I’ll leave tonight, and I’ll come back for a week when the baby is born. How’s that?”

“I can live with that.” How bad could it be? “Want to grab some breakfast?”

“Sounds wonderful.”

Toph went to get some money from her room, when she sensed it.

“And what’s all this new crap here?!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, so… Having Kanto just die on the mission just felt a bit… Idk, boring. I already did the accidental death because triad life is dangerous for Ling.
> 
> I thought this was way more interesting, and a better reason for Toph to never speak to Lin about it. “Your dad’s dead” is something a child can understand if they’re old enough. “Your dad’s a crime lord” is a little harder to explain and can lead to the child seeking the dad out. (I can also see Toph getting so pissed at someone she refuses to acknowledge his existence most of the time)
> 
> I’d also like to say that the starting idea for this, the thought that popped into my mind that lead to me writing this story was “What if Lin’s dad was a triad boss?” and the whole deal with being an informant and witness protection came later with the question “How could I make Toph fall in love with a criminal, but without making her look stupid?” So I was always kind of going for this, I hope you all don’t hate it
> 
> Anyway, Kanto still doesn’t know about Lin and I’m doing one more chapter to fix that.


	9. Lin’s Dad

**_1 year after Lin’s born_ **

Lin was asleep. Finally. That kid sure had a set of lungs on her.

It allowed Toph to finally shower and change for the first time in… She didn’t want to know how many days. Things were really busy at work for a few days and after finally getting a little breathing room she raced to Katara to get her little girl only to get the _sleepy_ version.

What could she do… She’d stay home with Lin tomorrow even if it meant the entire city burned down. That kid was spending so much time on Air Temple Island recently, she might start airbending soon.

After a shower the dishes were supposed to be next, but Toph decided to check on Lin’s position with her seismic sense. It stopped her dead in her tracks. Lin was fine, more than fine, sleeping soundly just where she’d left her. But there was another human form in the house. On the balcony. A form she knew very well.

It didn’t work like sight, she couldn’t be sure… But the posture and the context both pointed to it being Kanto. On her balcony. Right now. Guess, this was happening finally. She’d rather do the dishes… He wasn’t moving, he wasn’t going for Lin. That was good, she’d hate to have to kill him and wake their daughter.

There was an unexpectedly cold breeze outside. Toph had stepped onto the balcony in silence a few seconds ago to wait for him to start talking, but it was getting chilly and he was as good as frozen. No, she wouldn’t start. There was still a chance, even if it was a slim one, that he somehow still didn’t know about Lin. She’d keep her mouth shut.

“Did you know _before_?” he broke the silence. He sounded the same. It wasn’t accusatory or anything. It was… sad, but not like _lost my brother_ sad, more like _lost at cards_ sad.

She tried but she couldn’t hit him with an _I don’t know what you’re talking about_.

“Wanted to surprise you.” She tried not to laugh, she really gave it her all but the irony of everything was too much. She, however, managed to contain it to a bitter grin.

“Well, mission accomplished.” He laughed, looking up at the sky. She followed his every move carefully, which was sad, but also smart and kind of necessary.

“I thought you’d pieced it together already. I didn’t go out into the field for nine months.”

“Thought you were getting over me…”

Now she laughed. Way too hard and for way too long.

She’d often wondered if the whole experience of their _breakup_ , if it could even be called that, would’ve been easier or harder on her if there was no Lin. She could never settle on an answer, but one thing was certain, in that scenario Kanto wouldn’t be here on her balcony making her freeze her tits off as he thought of something to say.

“Well, are you… okay? B-Both of you, I mean?” Hearing Kanto stammer like that was really rare. Or was it the cold?

“We’re perfectly fine on our own, thank you.” She even forgot to put on socks. “How’d you even find out?”

_Because my plan was so perfect?_

“Saw yesterday’s newspaper. It had a picture of the Chief of Police walking with her kid. I did the math and here I am… So he or she’s definitely mine?”

“Strictly biologically, she is. But in every other sense she’s mine. Just mine.” It was a shitty thing to say to someone who was just discovering he was a father, but Toph had to be firm now. She couldn’t have him getting ideas. Lin was hers and she’d stay right here with her.

“It’s a daughter?”

“Lin. That’s her name.”

“Lin. Lin Beifong… I like it.”

“If she’d been a boy I would’ve gone with Ling, but… here we are.”

“Toph, I… I don’t know what to…” He turned to her then. “Can I, maybe… hug you?”

She needed way too long to answer that. “No.”

“Got it.”

Toph felt a snowflake fall on her then. Until that point, she was convinced they were just raindrops of a light drizzle, but now she was sure it was a snowflake. What was she thinking, she would’ve heard raindrops… Snow this early in the year was rather unus—

“Would it have changed anything?” She couldn’t help herself, distract herself, think pragmatically, she needed to know. And he was here now, right in front of her being honest and true.

“Would what?”

“If I hadn’t waited. If I’d told you about Lin, about our… If you’d known, would you still have gone through with it?”

He waited too long to answer. No honest answer came after so much thinking.

“It’s easy making big statements now that it’s all in the past. Neither of us can know what would’ve happened if…”

“Just say what you think.”

“I would’ve stayed with you.” She scuffed at that, but he kept talking anyway. “I care about my cause, but not enough to cost my child a father.”

Toph knew this already. She knew Kanto better than he gave her credit for. It was obvious how different he’d been while Ling was still alive. The boy gave him a purpose. Kanto needed Ling just as much as the little guy needed him. She was angry at herself for not seeing it sooner. He needed someone else to take care of, someone else to look up to him, someone else to fight off the darkness for, and she could’ve given him that someone, but she kept it a secret. She did bad, but he did worse. Was little Lin a lucky girl, or what?

Like she somehow knew, Lin started crying right in that moment, bringing a heavy silence to an unexpected but much welcome end.

“I have to go get her.” Toph took one step inside from the cold and immediately felt better. “You can come meet her if you want.”

“No, I… I know I can’t be her dad for real so why—”

“Don’t you wanna see her, Hotshot? It’s a one time offer...”

She left him then, because her daughter was throwing in some vaguely _ma_ sounds into her crying and she still wasn’t over the fact her baby would be talking soon. When she entered the room, Lin was standing up in her crib gazing into the hallway. She shut up the moment Toph showed up. Clever baby just wanted to check if everyone was accounted for.

Toph picked her up anyway, rocked her a bit from side to side as her feet sensed someone moving towards the room. In a few seconds Kanto was at the door and Lin’s little head turned immediately to stare at him.

“Is she looking at you?” Toph asked.

“Like I’m the first person she’s ever seen,” Kanto said before relaxing his posture a bit and stepping into the room, while staring at Lin as intently as she stared at him.

“It’s because you’re new. Oh, it’s okay, baby…” She stroked Lin’s little head. “She’s careful like that with strangers.”

The words left Toph’s mouth before she could think. Calling him a stranger, why didn’t she just fucking smash his jaw in… But fuck, that’s what he was to their daughter. A perfect stranger. And he could pretend otherwise, so could she, but Lin wouldn’t.

“Smart kid.”

“You wanna hold her?”

“No.” _Lie._ “It would be too much, it’d just make it harder to leave and would bring nothing—”

“Oh, get over yourself!” Toph basically forced Lin into his arms. He grabbed hold of her on instinct alone and only after did it really dawn on him that he was holding his daughter.

“She’s beautiful, Toph.” His voice came out so wobbly, _she_ was ready to start crying.

“Made a pretty great kid, didn’t we?”

He didn’t answer, probably trying to keep it together. In a few seconds he seemingly recovered and said something along the lines of “Hey, Lin.”

It made the baby cry instantly. It made sense, he was a strange man with a strange face and a strange voice who was holding her, and she was sleepy and cranky and… It broke Toph’s heart.

“You should probably take her back.” Kanto offered, trying to seem like he didn’t really care, but it was so obvious he did, and how could he not after she served him with that _one time thing_ bullshit earlier.

“No, no, baby. Shh… That’s Daddy. We like him… Shh… See?” Toph knew she had to show Lin what she meant, so she rushed to Kanto’s side, the one that was still free, and embraced him, leaning her head on his shoulder. She could feel him wince in surprise at the contact, but he soon recovered and put his free hand around her.

Lin wasn’t crying anymore. She was… Well, Toph couldn’t really tell what she was doing, probably just thinking, processing all of this.

_Me too, baby… Me too…_

“Toph, she’s… She’s resting on my shoulder.” The childish glee in his voice was something she never thought she’d hear from him.

“Well, try to stay calm, she doesn’t bite. Not often anyway.” Toph stroked her daughter’s back and got no response. “Are her eyes open?”

Kanto craned his neck to check, inadvertently leaning his head on hers. “I think they’re closed.” He was almost whispering now.

Now that Lin was falling back asleep, Toph could finally let go of Kanto. Only she didn’t. She didn’t want to. She had one of her hands around his back, while her mind was in the earth, listening to their three heartbeats. Lin didn’t take long to doze off and once she did, her mother instructed her father on how to lower her to her crib without waking her.

Toph and Kanto weren’t touching anymore as they stood over their daughter’s crib, and she hated it.

“Toph, I…” He broke the silence. “Thank you for this.”

She was still mad at him, pissed even, but it changed nothing when it came to how much she wanted to be near him. It sucked. He’d hurt her, _betrayed_ her, he stood for everything she despised, yet she couldn’t help but feel everything she used to feel for the man return. You didn’t just stop loving someone because they hurt you, that’d be easy. No, you felt both, the good and the bad, both there, both blurring and distorting each other.

Toph stepped towards him and leaned into his chest again. This was a night for the good, they had the rest of all their lives to focus on the bad. His heart jumped and he happily put one of his hands around her as he stared down at Lin.

“Does she look like you at all?” she asked. Not like there was anyone else with sight she could ask.

“Um… Maybe a little bit. I don’t really have photos of myself as a kid.” He sighed. “She does look a bit like Ling when he was that little.”

Toph wanted to ask if he was okay. Not just with Ling’s death, but with everything. If he was in danger, if he was eating enough, if it was worth it… She held herself back, talking would just remind her of why they couldn’t do this every night.

“Motherfucker,” she whispered into his chest. “Why’d you leave?”

“Why’d you hide the kid from me?” It was said softly, jokingly, while shifting her in his embrace so he could look at her.

“Triad trash,” she challenged back.

“Pig.”

“Lying, scheming man-whore.”

“Spoiled, bossy cunt.”

“Gutter rat.”

“You walk like a man.”

“That makes one of us.”

“Bitch.”

“Asshole.”

“Takes one to know one, I’m afraid.” He barely had time to finish that last bit, her lips were on his. Something just clicked and it was like they were transported a year back in time. At least their minds were.

They stumbled to Toph’s bedroom, not breaking contact, then fell onto the bed, her on top of him.

“Can I?” he stopped to ask once his hands were on the hem of her shirt.

Her brain seemed to be turned off at that moment since all she said was “Fuck, yes.”

And they did it one more time for old time’s sake. Toph thanked her unbelievable luck for months later since the encounter didn’t leave her pregnant again, despite them doing nothing to prevent it. She’d forgotten how dumb he made her. Getting knocked-up by a criminal once could be called an accident or a mistake, but two times was just stupidity. Simple as that…

She had no idea when he left. They fell asleep together, that she was sure she remembered. When she woke up, however, he was gone. Lin was still asleep in her room. Only thing he left was a plate of some kind of rice on the end table by Toph’s side. He’d made her breakfast. It was delicious, of course, yet she had no idea how he made anything from the crap she had in the fridge.

Toph thought about the life they could’ve had here as she ate her rice. How she’d wake up every morning to the smell of breakfast. How he’d goof off with Lin at the table every day and never get bored of it. How they’d both be home waiting for her when she came back, and he’d probably be teaching her to walk, or cook, or swear…

When she was done, Toph put the bowl away, then broke down sobbing.

**oooooooooo**

**_5 years after Lin’s born_ **

Kanto had just opened a new restaurant. Toph knew that had always been his dream, but she was also pretty sure that in his dream it wasn’t used as a money laundering front like it clearly was now. But she didn’t give a fuck about that today. She was there with a very specific goal in mind. Get information out of him, then, if necessary, kill him.

She was throwing Terra Triad members left and right as they were trying to stop her from reaching their boss. It wasn’t even slowing her down. She had no warrant but today she also had no sympathy for these criminals. They’d all live, that was enough for her tonight.

Once she reached the door to Kanto’s office, the doorman just opened the door for her. That was nice. That was smart. She only half-buried that one.

“Kanto!” She found him on a couch, enjoying one of those disgusting cigarettes of his. “Where’s my kid?!”

He didn’t get up, his heart remained just as calm. With a come-hither motion of his hand he bended the door closed by the metal doorknob. Now that they were alone, he acknowledged her presence finally.

“You don’t know where _our_ kid is?”

“Don’t give me that shit, I know you have her!”

“Lower your voice.”

“If you tell me right now, maybe—”

“Toph, lower your fucking voice!” He stood up sending a small earthquake through the room.

_Don’t kill him before you find out. Don’t kill him before you find out. Don’t kill him before you find out._

“Why?”

“We don’t know who’s listening. Now, are you sure Lin’s missing? And I mean, absolutely sure?”

“Oh, gee… Maybe I should check my pockets… Of course, I’m sure! Hundred percent. What I’m not sure about, is your involvement.” She stepped forward and tried to poke his chest, but he caught her finger and moved it away.

“I didn’t take her. Listen to my heart if you want to.”

“You know as well as I do that shit doesn’t work on you all the time.”

“Then listen to _me_. Why would I take her? She’s safe and happy with you. Or at least she was… What the fuck happened?”

“No, no, no…” She rubbed her face as she paced around his office. “I was so sure. Ninety percent. Ninety percent of the time kid’s missing, they’re with a parent or a family member… If you’re lying to me now, Kanto, I swear, they’ll never find what’s left of you.”

“What the fuck happened to her?”

“Nothing. Nothing… I don’t know.” Toph let herself fall onto the couch as she took all of this in. “I left her alone at home for like a second. A few minutes, I just had to go buy some food. And when I got back, she was nowhere to be found.”

“Well, did you recently make any new enemies? Was someone released from prison?”

“No, no… I have no idea. I’d know if someone I know was following me.” She sighed. “I have to go look for her. I shouldn’t have left her alone…” All the intensity was gone, all of it melted into sadness in seconds. “I’m gonna have to tell people. Everyone’s gonna think I’m such a terrible mother.”

She didn’t really plan of breaking down there and then, but his presence still had that effect on her.

“No, you’re not.” Kanto crouched down next to her but didn’t touch her in any way. “I left Ling alone too sometimes. Doing it alone is hard, you gotta do what you gotta do.”

This snapped her out of it. She jumped to her feet, started for the door when he caught her hand and held her back.

“I have to go look for her,” she said.

“I wanna help. She’s my daughter too…”

“No offense, Kanto, but—”

“I think I might know who has her.” She pulled her hand back after hearing that. “A rival of mine. Another triad leader… She found out about Lin very recently.”

“When you say _found out about Lin_ you mean…?”

“Found out who her daddy is.”

“How?!”

Kanto put a finger to his lips and spoke even quitter. “She figured it out, cause I never really wanted to take part in any of the attacks on you.”

“And you didn’t think that’d be a problem eventually?”

“She had nothing… Nothing but a hunch and a romantic tragedy to tell people. No one would buy it. I had no reason to think she’d take Lin. I would’ve dealt with her quietly in time.”

“Mark my words… If something happens to Lin, I’ll blame you.”

“Then, that’ll make two of us. Let’s make sure nothing does.”

“And how do you propose I explain your presence to the police officers while we search?”

“We’re not calling the police…” He checked something on his desk.

“I am the police!” She immediately remembered his insistence on keeping everything quiet, but weirdly, this time he didn’t make a comment about it.

“I have a plan. But I need you to make it happen.”

“We don’t even know if this woman has Lin.”

“Do you trust me?”

“I used to.” She had no idea what answer he expected from her after everything.

“Do you trust that I want to see Lin safe?”

She nodded. She had to give him that.

“Good,” he continued. “Then try this with me.”

**oooooooooo**

In ten minutes or so, Toph left the restaurant. She took the same route she used to come in, passing by all of Kanto’s men while leading their boss forward in handcuffs. The blank stares were almost too much for her, she knew she should not be enjoying it, but arresting Kanto had been something she wanted literally since the moment she met him.

None of the triad members did anything. They just watched in disbelief and whispered amongst themselves. Toph took her sweet time with it, though. It took her way longer to get out of the building than it did to get in. Kanto swore a bit at her as she shoved him into her police car and slammed the door after him. Then she got into the passenger’s seat.

“Go.”

“Yes, Ma’am,” the driver said, and started the car.

_Oh, trust me, Chief, you’ll like the first part_ , Toph remembered Kanto saying while they were still inside. _You finally get to arrest me. Make a real show of it, too…_

“Not to the station.” Toph told the driver.

“Ma’am?”

“You heard me. You’re here to be my eyes, not my fucking conscience.”

“I’d listen to the woman, pal.” Kanto leaned on the driver’s seat from the back, revealing his hands were free. He gave the scared young driver instructions to an abandoned house not that far off. He was always good with that. He probably had at least a dozen untraceable properties under his control now that he had real money.

_So what then?_

_Then it’s another old favorite of yours… You get to tie me up._

Altogether, Toph spent about ten minutes in the abandoned building before she returned to her driver and told him to leave. The lad insisted on knowing what was going on but Toph was really good at ignoring whining. She was a mother after all.

_Then I’d give her about twenty minutes, no more than that._

Toph had the kid drive her in a circle around town that would eventually lead them back. She ordered him to stop half-way and let her out. It looked like she was just getting a snack from a store, but in reality, she needed her feet on the ground if she planned on finding whoever was following her.

_There has to be someone, that’s how these things are done, believe me._

She eventually managed to lure the two men into an alley and arrested them. They were sent to the station with the driver who was by that point sweating through his uniform. As for her, she had to run back to the house where she left Kanto. It took her a bit longer than twenty minutes, so when Toph made it back, _she_ was already there.

_Her name’s Sun and she leads the Agni Kais. You don’t wanna know what she did to her mother to get her place… She’s one tough bitch._

_So am I._

_Well, I’m sure it’s her who took Lin and I’ve also had a hunch that she has a mole in my operation for some time now. Now if both those things are true, chances are she has someone watching you too. You’ll take care of them, mine will break cover to tell her I’ve been arrested and then…_

_We’ll be alone. But why would she risk herself to come there?_

_I know this woman. There is no way she’d resist the urge to gloat if we give her an opportunity._

“Did I catch you at a bad time, Kanto?”

Toph couldn’t believe it, but somehow this woman was even more smug than Kanto usually was. It made sense in a way, they made everything look like it’s going according to her plan. Sun walked in to find Kanto handcuffed to a chair and bleeding. Another part of the plan Toph was a fan of…

The woman wasn’t stupid, though. She did bring a few of her thugs who waited for her outside. Toph made quick work of those. They were handcuffed and gagged before they even knew something was wrong.

“Sun! You need to get me out of here!” Kanto really sold that scared and desperate act. Even Toph would’ve bought it, his heart didn’t give a thing away.

“Really? A cop? I wouldn’t touch one with a stick unless I could beat them with it.” The woman was slowly getting closer to him with every word. “And to have a kid with one? Revolting…”

“That’s why you have to help… Toph’s crazy, she thinks I took our daughter, which I didn’t, but I don’t know who else— You!”

This was all very cringe worthy when you knew Kanto was lying, but Sun seemed to be buying it. She laughed at his faked revelation and seemed to revel in Kanto’s pain. Toph didn’t like him either, but this bitch had to go down whether or not she had their daughter.

“Yes, that’s right. I have your sweet little Linny. She’s quite a smart girl, I have no idea where she gets it from.”

“Both of us,” Toph said from the back of the room. Sun whirled and it was all the distraction Kanto needed. He bended the cuffs off his own hands and wrapped them around hers. Then pulled her down to her knees by the cuffs.

Toph then enveloped the lower part of the woman’s body in earth to be absolutely sure she couldn’t firebend while they interrogate her. Then the Chief joined Kanto as he grabbed Sun by her hair and got close to her face.

“Where’s Lin?”

“Fuck you!” She spit in his face. “Cop-lover!”

“Look, honey, there’s two ways this ends.” Toph stepped in. “You tell us where Lin is and I deal with you after, or we find her ourselves and he deals with you after.”

“How about option number three? You never find her, not alive at least…”

“Listen, you—” Toph was stopped when Kanto nudged her aside.

“You know, I really do love a woman who wears jewelry,” Kanto said, then twitched his hand and Sun’s necklace flew up squeezing her neck enough to stop her breathing until Kanto decided to relax it. He left her like that just a couple of seconds, time moved slow when you were choking.

“Where is Lin?!” he screamed as he let her breathe.

“I don’t know! I don’t know, okay? I told one of my men to hide her from me as well.”

Kanto looked to Toph who shook her head. “Lie.”

“No, wait—” Sun didn’t have time to get any more out before the necklace wrapped itself around her neck again, this time tighter.

“I can take off your head with this, I’ve done it before, but by all means keep lying and let’s see what happens.” He let her breathe again and this time she needed some time to get her voice back.

“I know... I know where she is.”

“Address?”

“It’s not in Republic City.”

Kanto turned to Toph again who had her ears plugged trying not to listen to the firebender choking.

“Lie.” She really wanted it not to be, but Sun wasn’t nearly as good at this as Kanto.

Toph covered her ears again, but it didn’t help much as Kanto squeezed even harder this time. Even if she couldn’t hear anything, she’d still feel the woman’s heartbeat spike from pain.

Next time he let her inhale, Sun turned to Toph too. “You’re okay with this? You’re a police chief, for—”

“That’s not an address!” Kanto made the necklace tighten again but Toph took control over it from him. He’d gotten much better, but she could still take something from him just as easily as she could from Lin.

“Yes, yes, Chief! You’re better than this.” Sun panted. “Take me in for questioning.”

“I was better than this, but then you took my daughter, you bitch!”

_We can’t torture her. I… I can’t be part of that, Kanto._

_I know, I know… That’s why you have me. Lin needs it to be done right now, and I’ll do it. You’ll just stand there._

Toph let go of her control over the necklace. “All yours.”

_Mother first, chief second. Mother first, chief second. Mother first, chief second._ She almost made herself believe it was the right thing to do. Almost.

Kanto made the necklace tighten again. Sun told them the address then. Of course, she did…

“I’ll be back to arrest you, don’t worry.” Toph secured Sun with even more earth as Kanto was breaking into a car outside.

“Listen, Chief…”

“Do I have to gag you?”

“Please don’t let him touch my kids.”

“You have a lot of nerve—”

“I know. I know, but… Please, it’s not their fault, don’t let him hurt them. I didn’t hurt Lin. I just fed her, played games with her and put her to bed.” They tortured this woman, and this was the first time Toph heard any fear in her voice at all. _A tough bitch, indeed._

Toph felt a weight lift from her heart since none of that stuff about Lin being okay was a lie. “You have my word. Just… Try and breathe.”

She found Kanto in an old car outside, fiddling with the wires and quickly got into the passenger’s seat next to him. The place they had to get to wasn’t far, that was lucky, but they still couldn’t walk there. It was better to drive, anyway. She didn’t want anyone wondering what the chief of police was doing strolling the streets with a crime boss.

“Don’t worry, Toph, hard part’s over. I’ll get us there in no time and you’ll have Lin back like nothing even happened.” He said all that like he was talking about past events that just cannot be changed. Like it was destined or something…

They hadn’t yet discussed how they’d explain any of this to his triad and from what she could see he didn’t much care. She’d almost forgotten that was just how he was. When someone _his_ was in trouble he’d risk anything to get them out. He used to do it for Ling and apparently her and Lin now held that place in his mind.

“Thank you, Kanto.” That made him stop with the wires. “Really. I came to you with wild accusations and you dropped everything to help me. Us.”

“Well, I care about her. You.” He finally guessed the two wires he needed to connect, and the car engine started. “And anytime one of you needs me, I’ll be there.”

She kissed him then. It was quick, they had to go get Lin, after all, but it seemed to lift his spirits.

“What are you waiting for? Go.” Toph ordered and Kanto led them slowly to join traffic.

“What was that about?” he asked, probably grinning from ear to ear…

“I had to check.”

“Check what?”

“Where we were.”

“Coming up on Park Street, right now…”

She interrupted him by punching his shoulder. “You know what I mean.”

“So where are we?” He tried to mask the hopefulness behind that sentence, but failed. He should’ve tried harder, this just made it more difficult.

“I’m done with you.” Silence. “I thought I was, but I had to be sure.”

He still said nothing, just drove strictly sticking to regulations as to not draw attention.

“I didn’t mean that as an insult.” She tried. “But we’re not together and we haven’t been for years and now—”

“Why’d you have to be sure?” He asked unexpectedly. “Why now?”

“Because I’m pregnant.” She definitely wasn’t planning on admitting that tonight, to anyone, let alone _him_ , but Kanto had that fucking effect on her since the day she met him.

“Who?”

“Me.”

“You know what I mean…”

She sighed. “Sokka.”

“Oh.” It was more polite that what she was sure he actually wanted to say, which was just a sting of curses accompanied by feet stomping and fist waving. “Good for you two.”

“It is.”

“Then tell me this, why isn’t the _amazing_ Chief Sokka here to help with this? Or at least protect you and his kid?”

“He’s not in the city. And he’s not chief yet. Just a councilman.”

“So you tell Mr. Councilman you’re having his kid and he bolts to the South Pole?”

“He has duties to attend to there.” She paused. If only she could just shut up… “And he doesn’t exactly know yet.”

“You’re not very good at this, are you?” He laughed to himself.

“I’m gonna tell him. I’m waiting until I can see him in person.”

They stopped at a traffic light.

“Trust me on this, he wants to hear now.”

“I’ll tell him, I just need some time to—”

“No, you don’t get to do this to people, Toph.”

“I think the light already changed—”

“You get home tonight, you call him up and tell him.” He paused there, like he wasn’t sure he would continue. “You get so shocked when people are here for you, like they never are usually, but the truth is you don’t let us see you need us.”

She didn’t have anything to say to that. Finally, the silence was enough to get him to move the car. The quiet lasted for a few more minutes before she decided she needed a change of topic.

“What’s out plan when we get in there?”

“Simple.” He pulled over by the side of the road. “We get out here, approach on foot, then I go in and start killing people. You come in behind me, just a police officer looking for a missing child, having no involvement with the murders whatsoever. Then you find your daughter as the only living person there and are amazed at your luck.”

“Let me get this straight… You’re going to kill every person in there? How?”

“I’m not you, but I’ve gotten some practice in recent years. Plus, the people in there are hired to guard a child, not the national treasury. It won’t be that hard.” He reached into the back seat and got the clothes he took from the house. According to him it was entirely black and covered the majority of his face. Even if someone was to survive, they wouldn’t be able to recognize him.

“Even if you could, maybe you shouldn’t kill everyone.”

“Our kid is missing. Do you really want to talk ethics right now?” He gave her almost no time to answer. “I shouldn’t talk from this point on.” He got out of the car then, but she followed and held him back.

“A few rules.”

A dry laugh escaped him. “Sure.”

“Sun’s kids. I promised you wouldn’t hurt them. I can handle everyone else on my conscience, not them.”

“That bitch has not right—”

“I know, but her kids are innocent.”

“No, Lin’s innocent. Those bastards of hers will grow up to be same as her. They’re part of this world and its rules apply to them. Lin’s not.”

“What the fuck is that supposed to mean?”

“This is how it’s done, Toph. You get rid of someone, you get rid of the whole family in one swoop, otherwise the kids grow up and come back for revenge. Every time.”

“That’s insane, you have to—”

“Those are the rules of this world. You know that… My old boss, he made that mistake. He killed Ling and kept me breathing. And how did that work out for the old fool?”

“You were right, Kanto. We’re not here to debate ethics. I’ll make this unbelievably simple for you. Any kids die in there, even as an accident, and I kill you. That’s a rule of my world, you got that?”

He sighed deeply. “Okay. Just know that if they decide to take revenge on me, they might decide to go after Lin too, their mother can tell them about her.”

“They can fucking try,” she said, and he turned around to walk away. “Do you even know what she looks like?”

“Like me and you.”

**oooooooooo**

Toph could follow Kanto’s progress from outside with her seismic sense. Well, most of it. It was a big house. Once the first flour had been _cleared_ , she stepped in, careful to avoid the bodies. He used his switchblade almost exclusively that night, throwing it and metalbending to change its trajectory. Earthbending was too imposing, even a non-bender could feel its effects from a street away. That would get the police on their back too soon. There were a lot of reasons Kanto deserved to be arrested, but nothing that happened tonight qualified.

On the top floor, Toph felt a few people in a locked room, Kanto left behind. Probably Sun’s kids. By the size of them, they couldn’t have been much older than Lin. What was the woman thinking leaving them here…?

Then Toph felt light footsteps coming towards her. She’d know those anywhere…

“Lin?”

“Mommy!”

Toph caught the little girl and lifted her up, before showering her with kisses. This usually made Lin giggle and fight it off, but now she just clutched Toph for dear life. Toph embraced her too. Her baby… She was all scared and confused and squeezed so hard Toph probably didn’t even need to hold her up. Her little heart was threatening to break out of her chest.

“Momma, the scary man, he—”

“The scary men are gone, baby. They can’t take you anymore. Momma’s got you now.” Lin relaxed at that. Toph struggled not to cry. She didn’t want to upset her little girl again, but the relief of having her in her arms safe again was too much all at once. And to think she’d soon have someone who she’d love just as much…

Then Kanto walked into the hallway, presumably done with the last of Sun’s thugs.

“The scary man!” Lin hid her head in Toph’s shoulder again and Kanto stopped dead in his tracks. “That’s him!”

Kanto sighed and prepared to leave by another route, like he should’ve done, but Toph couldn’t let it happen. She didn’t even think, she just turned towards him and started walking to him slowly.

“This? No, Linny, baby, that’s a nice man. He’s Mom’s friend. He came here to save you with me.” Lin slowly lifted her head and turned it warily to study Kanto. “He came to help.” Toph put out her hand to Kanto. “Thank you for your service, good sir.” They shook hands too long and hard making sure Lin got the message. “Thank you for saving my Linny, she’s very important to me.”

“You’re very welcome.” Kanto finally dared speak. He probably thought his voice would scare Lin, but it had quite the opposite effect. It turned out that he sounded way less scary than he looked, because Lin responded to all this by offering her own hand to him.

His heartbeat spiked at that, and he took way too long to gather his wits and shake his daughter’s hand. That moment, right there, would forever stay Toph’s favorite memory of Kanto. There was just something about the way his breath caught in his throat just before their hands touched, something that not even all the dead bodies in that house could ruin.

But in just seconds it was over. Kanto let go, took a moment to remember the sight of the family he could’ve had, then disappeared out a window.

**oooooooooo**

**_18 years after Lin’s born_ **

“Come on, Toph! Move! They’re taking all the best seats!” Sokka shoved his way through the crowd.

“It’s her academy. She can tell people to give us their seats, can’t you, Mom?” Suyin asked.

“At least someone’s using their head.” Toph grinned. “Go on, baby. You two go and save me a spot. I need to do something first.”

“You’re not coming with us? It’s about to start.” Su grumbled but headed forward.

“Lin’s going to be very upset if it starts and you’re not there.” Sokka reminded her. It was true.

Today was _finally_ Lin’s graduation from the Police Academy. To Toph it seemed like it took that kid forever to finish it. It’s not like she couldn’t wait for Lin to join her at work, but if she was being honest, it kind of, sort of sounded a bit fun. Everyone knew kids pulled away from their parents during their teenage years, it was natural, it happened with Lin years ago and it was just starting to happen with little Su. Her youngest was already as old as Toph was when she ran away from home which meant she’d be seeing less of her soon enough.

It felt nice to think that Lin may come back to her now, only not as the baby she was, but a grown-up who _chose_ to spend time on the same stuff Toph devoted her life to. And Lin really did _love_ the work. Much more than Toph ever did. And it made her so fucking proud.

“I’ll make sure she sees me. That good enough for ya?”

“I guess. We’ll be waiting for you.” Sokka turned and led Su away.

Toph had something to do. This day was not to be interrupted by a disaster and until that point there had been nothing suspicious going on. Then her seismic sense picked up a man standing at the edge of the crowd. She briefly considered if having the ceremony outdoors was a mistake, then moved to stand next to the man.

“Kanto.” She didn’t turn to him, only stood near and pretended like she was waiting for the ceremony to begin like everyone else.

“Chief Beifong.” He allowed himself a bit more volume than her whisper had, but still she was sure no one around them could hear them well enough to eavesdrop.

“Trouble?”

“No one’s that dumb.”

“Then why are you here?”

“You thought I’d miss my only daughter’s graduation?”

“This place is crawling with cops. You feeling lucky today, Hotshot?”

The nickname made him pause, but he recovered. “You can’t tell, but I’m in disguise. My hair is dyed, I have a mustache and glasses.”

So he really wanted to be here. Toph could be nice for five minutes…

“Can you see her? How does she look?” There were simply too many hearts there for her to get any kind of reading on Lin.

“I do, she’s… I guess, she looks nervous.”

“She biting her nails?”

“Not right now, no.”

“Then it’s not that bad.”

“Wait… She’s talking to a boy.” Kanto shifted besides her, probably trying to get a better look. They were pretty far. “Is that the boyfriend? Do we like him?”

“Is he bald?”

“No.”

“Then it’s her best friend. They’re graduating together.”

“Her boyfriend’s bald?”

“Yeah,” Toph tried her best not to smile. “And covered with tattoos.”

“Well, _I_ don’t like that…”

She chuckled. “And how do you feel about our baby hunting you and the likes of you with me from now on?”

“It’s not convenient, that’s for sure. But… I’m strangely proud.”

“Yeah, our baby’s all grown up now.” Toph didn’t want to ruin the moment, but it had to be said. “That doesn’t change anything though. You’re to have no contact.”

“So if she arrests me, I just say Toph forbade it?”

“Don’t worry, if you need to be taken in, I’ll do it myself.”

“Oh, she’s looking around for you now, Toph.”

“How can you tell she’s looking for me?”

“It’s obvious. She’s not finding you… And she’s biting her nails… You need to get up front where she can see you.”

“She’ll find me, just give her time.”

“There’s also a little girl and a Water Tribe hunk looking over here and …waving? Are they waving to a blind person?”

“Yeah, they’re mine. I better get back.” She waved back in hopes that would settle Sokka and Su for a while.

“It was nice seeing you.”

“Yup, you too, I guess. Glad you’re not dead. Would prefer it if you were in prison.”

“I think there might be something wrong with me.” He chuckled dryly. “Cause after everything, every time I see you I wanna kiss you.”

What was he doing? What could he possibly gain from this?

“Oh, there is definitely something wrong with you, Kanto. It’s just not that part.” And with that she left him to take her seat next to Sokka. It was time for Lin’s speech.

**oooooooooo**

**_23 years after Lin’s born_ **

Toph picked up the radio’s microphone.

“Yes, Mrs Avatar?”

“Toph, you need to talk to Lin!”

“What did that kid do now? I didn’t even know she was over there.”

“Are you alone?”

Toph’s tone had been nothing but fun and jokes until then, but Katara would never say _that_ if not for a good reason.

“Wait.” Toph waved her assistant out of her office. “I am now. What is it?”

“Lin’s here and she’s researching something—”

“So what? I should come stop her? If she wants to overexert herself, there’s nothing you or me can do about it… She’s a grown-ass adult, for Spirits’ sake!”

“Toph, I looked at her papers and saw the name _Kanto_. Now, I know it might be a coincidence, it’s an unusual name, but still… I wanted to give you a heads-up anyway, if Lin comes to you with questions, that you’re not blindsided… Toph?”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about, but I’ve got work to do, so…” It had to be a coincidence, right? Toph didn’t want to think about the alternative. Telling Katara the name had to have been the worst decision of her life. Of course, she’d bud in, like she did with everything.

“Wait, just… I wanted you to know. That’s it. I won’t say anything else.”

“Then, I guess, we’re done here.” Toph ended the connection.

**oooooooooo**

“Chief!” Hong barged into Toph’s office. “The suspect demands to talk to you.”

“Oh, I work for her now, is that it?” She smirked, but got up to follow him. “What’s the deal with that kid anyway?”

“She’s just that… a kid. She’s a minor, so we can’t charge her.”

“Then why does she wanna talk to me?”

“Well, she says she has important information, but honestly… I doubt it. She’s a dumb twelve-year-old. Sources say she runs with the Terra Triad, but I doubt she—”

“I’ll talk to her. Take me.” There was usually only one reason kids from Terra Triad came to talk to her.

In two minutes, she was in an interrogation room with the girl and in two more minutes, she made Hong and his partner go get lunch and leave her alone with the kid. _To make her feel more comfortable_ , she’d told them. _To make her open up._

“We’re alone now.” Toph sat down opposite the suspect.

“I have a message for you,” the girl whispered, still afraid her job had been too easy. “From the Boss.”

“Yeah, I figured… I’m listening.”

“He said to tell you… _I’m having dinner with girl Ling right now. She came looking for me. You should come eat with us._ ”

_Girl Ling_ had to be Lin, right? What was that asshole up to now? They had a fucking deal! Lin was hers, she was never to find out… But what if he had no choice. She could’ve come looking for him the overconfident young cop she was… Damn it, Lin!

“That it?” Toph asked.

“Yeah. I don’t know if it means something to you.”

“It does. It means things are about to get ugly.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don’t know how I feel about this last chapter, but here, it’s done…
> 
> Now about the last part… So I originally planned for the story of how Toph and Kanto fell in love to be a string of flashbacks in a bigger story of Lin finding him as an adult. But then I realized the Toph Kanto story came out sooooo much better, so I published it like this, but that still left me with a bunch of “Lin looking for her dad” drafts. And they’re not doing any good to anyone on my hard drive, so I’ve decided to publish a little “sequel” by polishing them up little.
> 
> To sum up, after reading this, check out “Like Father, Like Daughter” (you know, if you want :)
> 
> Oh, and also, if you like kind of Republic City police work themed stuff, maybe checkout my story “The Unexpected Case of Bumi, Son of Avatar”. It’s not all about the police work, but it is centered around a murder investigation led by Lin.

**Author's Note:**

> Also, I apologize for the entire story, the whole thing will be from Toph's perspective and I TRIED to not describe things she couldn't sense with her seismic stuff, and I TRIED to not use verbs like saw, looked, stared, but I just KNOW a couple of those bastards are in there somewhere, so I'm sorry. And it is so unclear what she can actually "see", so I took some liberties and imagined she can sense something like where a person's head is pointed at and details like that, but seriously, my girl can sense ants! I think it checks out…
> 
> I'll try to post every few days :)


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